CKIT antibody drug conjugates

ABSTRACT

The present invention relates to anti-cKIT antibodies, antibody fragments, antibody drug conjugates, and their uses for the treatment of cancer.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present disclosure is directed to anti-cKIT antibodies, antibody fragments, antibody drug conjugates, and their uses for the treatment of cancer.

SEQUENCE LISTING

This application contains a Sequence Listing which has been submitted in ASCII format via EFS-WEB and is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. Sais ASCII copy, created on Aug. 19, 2020, is named PAT056353WOPCT_SL_ST25.txt and is 176,365 bytes in size.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

cKIT is a single transmembrane, receptor tyrosine kinase that binds the ligand Stem Cell Factor (SCF). SCF induces homodimerization of cKIT which activates its tyrosine kinase activity and signals through both the PI3-AKT and MAPK pathways (Kindblom et al., Am J. Path. 1998 152(5):1259). cKIT was initially discovered as an oncogene as a truncated form expressed by a feline retrovirus (Besmer et al., Nature 1986 320:415-421). Cloning of the corresponding human gene demonstrated that cKIT is a member of the type III class of receptor tyrosine kinases, which count among the family members; FLT3, CSF-1 receptor and PDGF receptor.

Mice that are mutant for cKIT have shown that cKIT is required for the development of hematopoietic cells, germ cells, mast cells and melanocytes. In the human, cKIT loss of function may lead to deafness and de-pigmentation of the skin and hair. A number of gain of function mutations for cKIT have been described in various cancers. Such cancers include gastro-intestinal-stromal tumors (GIST), acute myeloid leukemia (AML), small cell lung cancer (SCLC), mast cell leukemia (MCL) and pancreatic cancer (Hirota et al., Science 1998 (279):577; Esposito et al., Lab. Invets. 2002 82(11):1481).

Because of these preliminary indications that cKIT was an oncogene, an antibody was generated that identified cKIT as a marker of AML (Gadd et al., Leuk. Res. 1985 (9):1329). This murine monoclonal, known as YB5.B8, was generated by using leukemic blast cells from a human patient and bound cKIT, which was abundantly expressed on the surface of the AML cells, but did not detect cKIT on normal blood or bone marrow cells (Gadd et al., supra). A second cKIT antibody (SR-1) was generated that blocked the binding of SCF to cKIT and thus blocked cKIT signaling (Broudy et al., Blood 1992 79(2):338). The biological effect of the SR-1 antibody was to inhibit BFU-E and CFU-GM growth, and based on this evidence, suggested using it for further studies on hematopoiesis or tumor cell growth (Broudy et al., supra).

In further cancer studies, investigators found that treatment with imatinib, a small molecule inhibitor of cKIT, would significantly reduce proliferation of GIST cell lines. However, Imatinib treated cells become resistant over time due to secondary mutations in cKIT (Edris et al., Proc. Nat. Acad. Sci. USA, Early On-line Edition 2013). However, if the GIST cells were treated with the SR-1 antibody as a second therapeutic, there was significant decrease in cell proliferation, and a decrease in cKIT expression on the cell surface (Edris et al., supra). Thus, a naked SR-1 antibody was efficacious in addressing the problem of Imatinib resistance in human GIST lines, suggesting that an Imatinib/anti-cKIT antibody combination may be useful.

Antibody drug conjugates (“ADCs”) have been used for the local delivery of cytotoxic agents in the treatment of cancer (see e.g., Lambert, Curr. Opinion In Pharmacology 5:543-549, 2005). ADCs allow targeted delivery of the drug moiety where maximum efficacy with minimal toxicity may be achieved. As more ADCs show promising clinical results, there is an increased need to develop new therapeutics for cancer therapy. In spite of the extensive work on ADCs, though, only a few classes of cell proliferation inhibitors or cytotoxins have been used extensively as ADC payloads. Even though the first ADC approved for use in humans in the U.S. was launched in 2000 (Mylotarg®, which was later withdrawn from the market), a decade later only a few chemical classes of drug compounds (maytansinoids, auristatins, calicheamycins and duocarmycins) had reached clinical trials as payloads for ADCs (Antibody-Drug Conjugates: the Next Generation of Moving Parts, A. Lash, Start-Up, December 2011, 1-6). This suggests how difficult it is to identify a suitable class of drug compounds that make effective ADC payloads. Given the widely acknowledged value of ADCs as therapeutics, particularly for treating cancer, there thus remains a need for novel cell proliferation inhibitors suited for use as payloads in ADCs.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present disclosure is directed to an antibody drug conjugate of the formula Ab-(L-(D)_(m))_(n) or a pharmaceutically acceptable salt thereof; wherein

-   -   Ab is an antibody or antigen binding fragment thereof that         specifically binds to an epitope of human cKIT;     -   L is a linker;     -   D is a drug moiety;     -   m is an integer from 1 to 8; and     -   n is an integer from 1 to 10.         The antibody drug conjugate, wherein said n is 2 or 4.

The antibody drug conjugate according to any of the preceding embodiments, wherein said antibody or antigen binding fragment thereof specifically binds the extracellular domain of cKIT (SEQ ID NO:178).

The antibody drug conjugate according to any of the preceding embodiments, wherein said antibody or antigen binding fragment specifically binds to an epitope of human cKIT at domains 1-3 (SEQ ID NO:173).

The antibody drug conjugate according to any of the preceding embodiments, wherein said antibody or antigen binding fragment thereof specifically binds human cKIT at SEQ ID NO: 179 and SEQ ID NO: 180.

The antibody drug conjugate according to any of the preceding embodiments, wherein said antibody or antigen binding fragment thereof comprises:

-   -   (i) a heavy chain variable region that comprises (a) a HCDR1         (CDR-Complementarity Determining Region) of SEQ ID NO: 76, (b) a         HCDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 77, (c) a HCDR3 of SEQ ID NO: 78; and a         light chain variable region that comprises: (d) a LCDR1 of SEQ         ID NO: 85, (e) a LCDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 86, and (f) a LCDR3 of SEQ         ID NO: 87;     -   (ii) a heavy chain variable region that comprises (a) a HCDR1 of         SEQ ID NO: 22, (b) a HCDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 23, (c) a HCDR3 of SEQ         ID NO: 24; and a light chain variable region that comprises: (d)         a LCDR1 of SEQ ID NO: 31, (e) a LCDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 32, and (f)         a LCDR3 of SEQ ID NO: 33;     -   (iii) a heavy chain variable region that comprises (a) a HCDR1         of SEQ ID NO: 130, (b) a HCDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 131, (c) a HCDR3 of         SEQ ID NO: 132; and a light chain variable region that         comprises: (d) a LCDR1 of SEQ ID NO: 139, (e) a LCDR2 of SEQ ID         NO: 140, and (f) a LCDR3 of SEQ ID NO: 141;     -   (iv) a heavy chain variable region that comprises: (a) a HCDR1         of SEQ ID NO: 58, (b) a HCDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 59, (c) a HCDR3 of         SEQ ID NO: 60; and a light chain variable region that         comprises: (d) a LCDR1 of SEQ ID NO: 67, (e) a LCDR2 of SEQ ID         NO: 68, and (f) a LCDR3 of SEQ ID NO: 69;     -   (v) a heavy chain variable region that comprises: (a) a HCDR1 of         SEQ ID NO: 40, (b) a HCDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 41, (c) a HCDR3 of SEQ         ID NO: 42; and a light chain variable region that comprises: (d)         a LCDR1 of SEQ ID NO: 49, (e) a LCDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 50, and (f)         a LCDR3 of SEQ ID NO: 51;     -   (vi) a heavy chain variable region that comprises: (a) a HCDR1         of SEQ ID NO: 94, (b) a HCDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 95, (c) a HCDR3 of         SEQ ID NO: 96; and a light chain variable region that         comprises: (d) a LCDR1 of SEQ ID NO: 103, (d) a LCDR2 of SEQ ID         NO: 104, and (f) a LCDR3 of SEQ ID NO: 105;     -   (vii) a heavy chain variable region that comprises: (a) a HCDR1         of SEQ ID NO: 112, (b) a HCDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 113, (c) a HCDR3 of         SEQ ID NO: 114; and a light chain variable region that         comprises: (d) a LCDR1 of SEQ ID NO: 121, (e) a LCDR2 of SEQ ID         NO: 122, and (f) a LCDR3 of SEQ ID NO: 123;     -   (viii) a heavy chain variable region that comprises: (a) a HCDR1         of SEQ ID NO: 3, (b) a HCDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 4, (c) a HCDR3 of SEQ         ID NO: 5; and a light chain variable region that comprises: (d)         a LCDR1 of SEQ ID NO: 12, (e) a LCDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 13, and (f)         a LCDR3 of SEQ ID NO: 14; or     -   (ix) a heavy chain variable region that comprises: (a) a HCDR1         of SEQ ID NO: 148, (b) a HCDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 149, (c) a HCDR3 of         SEQ ID NO: 150; and a light chain variable region that         comprises: (d) a LCDR1 of SEQ ID NO: 157, (e) a LCDR2 of SEQ ID         NO: 158, and (f) a LCDR3 of SEQ ID NO: 159.

The antibody drug conjugate according to any of the preceding embodiments, in which at least one amino acid within a CDR is substituted by a corresponding residue of a corresponding CDR of another anti-cKIT antibody in Table 3.

The antibody drug conjugate according to any of the preceding embodiments, in which one or two amino acids within a CDR have been modified, deleted or substituted.

The antibody drug conjugate of any of claims 1-3, wherein said antibody or antigen binding fragment thereof comprises:

-   -   (i) a heavy chain variable region (VH) that comprises (a) SEQ ID         NO: 82, and a light chain variable region (VL) that         comprises: (b) SEQ ID NO: 91;     -   (ii) a heavy chain variable region (VH) that comprises (a) SEQ         ID NO: 28, and a light chain variable region (VL) that         comprises: (b) SEQ ID NO: 37;     -   (iii) a heavy chain variable region (VH) that comprises (a) SEQ         ID NO: 136, and a light chain variable region (VL) that         comprises: (b) SEQ ID NO: 145;     -   (iv) a heavy chain variable region (VH) that comprises (a) SEQ         ID NO: 64, and a light chain variable region (VL) that         comprises: (b) SEQ ID NO: 73;     -   (v) a heavy chain variable region (VH) that comprises (a) SEQ ID         NO: 46, and a light chain variable region (VL) that         comprises: (b) SEQ ID NO: 55;     -   (vi) a heavy chain variable region (VH) that comprises (a) SEQ         ID NO: 100, and a light chain variable region (VL) that         comprises: (b) SEQ ID NO: 109;     -   (vii) a heavy chain variable region (VH) that comprises (a) SEQ         ID NO: 118, and a light chain variable region (VL) that         comprises: (b) SEQ ID NO: 127;     -   (viii) a heavy chain variable region (VH) that comprises (a) SEQ         ID NO: 11, and a light chain variable region (VL) that         comprises: (b) SEQ ID NO: 20; or     -   (ix) a heavy chain variable region (VH) that comprises (a) SEQ         ID NO: 154, and a light chain variable region (VL) that         comprises: (b) SEQ ID NO: 163.

The antibody drug conjugate according to any of the preceding embodiments, that retains at least 90, 91, 92, 93, 94, 95, 96, 97, 98 or 99% identity over either the variable light chain or variable heavy chain region.

The antibody drug conjugate according to any of the preceding embodiments, wherein the antibody is a monoclonal antibody, a chimeric antibody, a humanized antibody, a human engineered antibody, a human antibody, a single chain antibody(scFv) or an antibody fragment.

The antibody drug conjugate according to any of the preceding embodiments, wherein said linker (L) is selected from the group consisting of a cleavable linker, a non-cleavable linker, a hydrophilic linker, a procharged linker and a dicarboxylic acid based linker.

The antibody drug conjugate according to any of the preceding embodiments, wherein the linker is derived from a cross-linking reagent selected from the group consisting of N-succinimidyl-3-(2-pyridyldithio)propionate (SPDP), N-succinimidyl 4-(2-pyridyldithio)pentanoate (SPP), N-succinimidyl 4-(2-pyridyldithio)butanoate (SPDB), N-succinimidyl-4-(2-pyridyldithio)2-sulfo-butanoate (sulfo-SPDB), N-succinimidyl iodoacetate (SIA), N-succinimidyl(4-iodoacetyl)aminobenzoate (SIAB), maleimide PEG NHS, N-succinimidyl 4-(maleimidomethyl) cyclohexanecarboxylate (SMCC), N-sulfosuccinimidyl 4-(maleimidomethyl) cyclohexanecarboxylate (sulfo-SMCC) or 2,5-dioxopyrrolidin-1-yl 17-(2,5-dioxo-2,5-dihydro-1H-pyrrol-1-yl)-5,8,11,14-tetraoxo-4,7,10,13-tetraazaheptadecan-1-oate (CX1-1).

The antibody drug conjugate according to any of the preceding embodiments, wherein said linker (L) comprises a group of the formula —C(O)NR²¹— or —NR²¹—C(O)— wherein R²¹ is of the formula —(CH₂)₁₋₄—R²², where R²² is a polar group selected from —OH, —NH₂, N(R²³)₂, COOR²³, CON(R²³)₂, —(OCH₂CH₂O)_(k)—OCH₂CH₂OR²³, and —SO₂R²³, where k is 0 to 4 and each R²³ is independently H or C₁₋₄ alkyl.

The antibody drug conjugate according to any of the preceding embodiments, wherein said drug moiety (D) is selected from a group consisting of: an Eg5 inhibitor, a V-ATPase inhibitor, a pro-apoptotic agent, a Bcl2 inhibitor, an MCL1 inhibitor, a HSP90 inhibitor, an IAP inhibitor, an mTor inhibitor, a microtubule stabilizer, a microtubule destabilizer, an auristatin, a dolastatin, a MetAP (methionine aminopeptidase), an inhibitor of nuclear export of proteins CRM1, a DPPIV inhibitor, proteasome inhibitors, inhibitors of phosphoryl transfer reactions in mitochondria, a protein synthesis inhibitor, a kinase inhibitor, a CDK2 inhibitor, a CDK9 inhibitor, a kinesin inhibitor, an HDAC inhibitor, a DNA damaging agent, a DNA alkylating agent, a DNA intercalator, a DNA minor groove binder, a RNA polymerase inhibitor, a topoisomerase inhibitor and a DHFR inhibitor.

The antibody drug conjugate according to any of the preceding embodiments, wherein the drug moiety (D) and linker (L) is selected from Table 1.

The antibody drug conjugate according to any of the preceding embodiments, wherein the antibody contains at least one non-native cysteine introduced into a constant region, and the linker (L) is attached to the non-native cysteine.

The antibody drug conjugate according to any of the preceding embodiments, wherein the at least one non-native cysteine introduced into the constant region is selected from the group consisting of SEQ ID NO: 185, SEQ ID NO:186, SEQ ID NO:187 and SEQ ID NO:188.

The antibody drug conjugate according to any of the preceding embodiments, in combination with another therapeutic agent.

The antibody drug conjugate according to any of the preceding embodiments, in combination with a therapeutic agent listed in Table 14.

An antibody drug conjugate of the formula:

or a pharmaceutically acceptable salt thereof; wherein; antibody (AntiB) is an antibody or antigen binding fragment thereof that specifically binds to human cKIT, and n is an integer from 1 to 10.

The antibody drug conjugate according to any of the preceding embodiments, wherein said antibody or antigen binding fragment specifically binds to an epitope of human cKIT at domains 1-3 (SEQ ID NO:173).

The antibody drug conjugate according to any of the preceding embodiments, wherein said antibody or antigen binding fragment thereof specifically binds human cKIT at SEQ ID NO: 179 and SEQ ID NO: 180.

The antibody drug conjugate according to any of the preceding embodiments, wherein said antibody (antiB) is an antibody or antigen binding fragment thereof comprises:

-   -   (i) a heavy chain variable region that comprises (a) a HCDR1         (CDR-Complementarity Determining Region) of SEQ ID NO: 76, (b) a         HCDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 77, (c) a HCDR3 of SEQ ID NO: 78; and a         light chain variable region that comprises: (d) a LCDR1 of SEQ         ID NO: 85, (e) a LCDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 86, and (f) a LCDR3 of SEQ         ID NO: 87;     -   (ii) a heavy chain variable region that comprises (a) a HCDR1 of         SEQ ID NO: 22, (b) a HCDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 23, (c) a HCDR3 of SEQ         ID NO: 24; and a light chain variable region that comprises: (d)         a LCDR1 of SEQ ID NO: 31, (e) a LCDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 32, and (f)         a LCDR3 of SEQ ID NO: 33;     -   (iii) a heavy chain variable region that comprises (a) a HCDR1         of SEQ ID NO: 130, (b) a HCDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 131, (c) a HCDR3 of         SEQ ID NO: 132; and a light chain variable region that         comprises: (d) a LCDR1 of SEQ ID NO: 139, (e) a LCDR2 of SEQ ID         NO: 140, and (f) a LCDR3 of SEQ ID NO: 141;     -   (iv) a heavy chain variable region that comprises: (a) a HCDR1         of SEQ ID NO: 58, (b) a HCDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 59, (c) a HCDR3 of         SEQ ID NO: 60; and a light chain variable region that         comprises: (d) a LCDR1 of SEQ ID NO: 67, (e) a LCDR2 of SEQ ID         NO: 68, and (f) a LCDR3 of SEQ ID NO: 69;     -   (v) a heavy chain variable region that comprises: (a) a HCDR1 of         SEQ ID NO: 40, (b) a HCDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 41, (c) a HCDR3 of SEQ         ID NO: 42; and a light chain variable region that comprises: (d)         a LCDR1 of SEQ ID NO: 49, (e) a LCDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 50, and (f)         a LCDR3 of SEQ ID NO: 51;     -   (vi) a heavy chain variable region that comprises: (a) a HCDR1         of SEQ ID NO: 94, (b) a HCDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 95, (c) a HCDR3 of         SEQ ID NO: 96; and a light chain variable region that         comprises: (d) a LCDR1 of SEQ ID NO: 103, (d) a LCDR2 of SEQ ID         NO: 104, and (f) a LCDR3 of SEQ ID NO: 105;     -   (vii) a heavy chain variable region that comprises: (a) a HCDR1         of SEQ ID NO: 112, (b) a HCDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 113, (c) a HCDR3 of         SEQ ID NO: 114; and a light chain variable region that         comprises: (d) a LCDR1 of SEQ ID NO: 121, (e) a LCDR2 of SEQ ID         NO: 122, and (f) a LCDR3 of SEQ ID NO: 123;     -   (viii) a heavy chain variable region that comprises: (a) a HCDR1         of SEQ ID NO: 3, (b) a HCDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 4, (c) a HCDR3 of SEQ         ID NO: 5; and a light chain variable region that comprises: (d)         a LCDR1 of SEQ ID NO: 12, (e) a LCDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 13, and (f)         a LCDR3 of SEQ ID NO: 14; or     -   (ix) a heavy chain variable region that comprises: (a) a HCDR1         of SEQ ID NO: 148, (b) a HCDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 149, (c) a HCDR3 of         SEQ ID NO: 150; and a light chain variable region that         comprises: (d) a LCDR1 of SEQ ID NO: 157, (e) a LCDR2 of SEQ ID         NO: 158, and (f) a LCDR3 of SEQ ID NO: 159.

The antibody drug conjugate according to any of the preceding embodiments, in which at least one amino acid within a CDR is substituted by a corresponding residue of a corresponding CDR of another anti-cKIT antibody of Table 3.

The antibody drug conjugate according to any of the preceding embodiments, in which one or two amino acids within a CDR have been modified, deleted or substituted.

The antibody drug conjugate according to any of the preceding embodiments, wherein said antibody or antigen binding fragment thereof comprises:

-   -   (i) a heavy chain variable region (VH) that comprises (a) SEQ ID         NO: 82, and a light chain variable region (VL) that         comprises: (b) SEQ ID NO: 91;     -   (ii) a heavy chain variable region (VH) that comprises (a) SEQ         ID NO: 28, and a light chain variable region (VL) that         comprises: (b) SEQ ID NO: 37;     -   (iii) a heavy chain variable region (VH) that comprises (a) SEQ         ID NO: 136, and a light chain variable region (VL) that         comprises: (b) SEQ ID NO: 145;     -   (iv) a heavy chain variable region (VH) that comprises (a) SEQ         ID NO: 64, and a light chain variable region (VL) that         comprises: (b) SEQ ID NO: 73;     -   (v) a heavy chain variable region (VH) that comprises (a) SEQ ID         NO: 46, and a light chain variable region (VL) that         comprises: (b) SEQ ID NO: 55;     -   (vi) a heavy chain variable region (VH) that comprises (a) SEQ         ID NO: 100, and a light chain variable region (VL) that         comprises: (b) SEQ ID NO: 109;     -   (vii) a heavy chain variable region (VH) that comprises (a) SEQ         ID NO: 118, and a light chain variable region (VL) that         comprises: (b) SEQ ID NO: 127;     -   (viii) a heavy chain variable region (VH) that comprises (a) SEQ         ID NO: 11, and a light chain variable region (VL) that         comprises: (b) SEQ ID NO: 20; or     -   (ix) a heavy chain variable region (VH) that comprises (a) SEQ         ID NO: 154, and a light chain variable region (VL) that         comprises: (b) SEQ ID NO: 163.

The antibody drug conjugate according to any of the preceding embodiments, that retains at least 90, 91, 92, 93, 94, 95, 96, 97, 98 or 99% identity over either the variable light chain or variable heavy chain region.

The antibody drug conjugate according to any of the preceding embodiments, wherein the antibody is a monoclonal antibody, a chimeric antibody, a humanized antibody, a human engineered antibody, a human antibody, a single chain antibody(scFv) or an antibody fragment.

The antibody drug conjugate according to any of the preceding embodiments, wherein said n is an integer from 2 to 8.

The antibody drug conjugate according to any of the preceding embodiments, wherein said n is an integer from 3 to 4.

The antibody drug conjugate according to any of the preceding embodiments, in combination with another therapeutic agent.

The antibody drug conjugate according to any of the preceding embodiments, in combination with a therapeutic agent listed in Table 14.

The antibody drug conjugate according to any of the preceding embodiments, wherein the antibody contains at least one non-native cysteine introduced into a constant region, and the linker (L) is attached to the non-native cysteine.

The antibody drug conjugate according to any of the preceding embodiments, wherein the at least one non-native cysteine introduced into the constant region is selected from the group consisting of SEQ ID NO: 185, SEQ ID NO:186, SEQ ID NO:187 and SEQ ID NO:188.

A pharmaceutical composition comprising the antibody drug conjugate according to any of the preceding embodiments, and a pharmaceutically acceptable carrier.

The pharmaceutical composition according to any of the preceding embodiments, wherein said composition is prepared as a lyophilisate.

A method of treating an cKIT positive cancer in a patient in need thereof, comprising administering to said patient the antibody drug conjugate, or the pharmaceutical composition.

The method according to any of the preceding embodiments, wherein said cancer is selected from the group consisting of gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST), small cell lung cancer (SCLC), acute myeloid leukemia (AML), melanoma, mast cell leukemia (MCL), mastocytosis, neurofibromatosis, breast cancer, non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), and pancreatic cancer.

The method wherein the antibody drug conjugate or the pharmaceutical composition according to any of the preceding embodiments, is administered in combination with another therapeutic agent.

The method according to any of the preceding embodiments, wherein the antibody drug conjugate or the pharmaceutical composition is administered in combination with a therapeutic listed in Table 14.

The antibody drug conjugate any of the preceding embodiments for use as a medicament.

The antibody drug conjugate, or the pharmaceutical composition according to any of the preceding embodiments, for use in the treatment of a cKIT positive cancer.

The antibody drug conjugate according to any of the preceding embodiments, administered in combination with another therapeutic agent.

The antibody drug conjugate according to any of the preceding embodiments, administered in combination with a therapeutic agent listed in Table 14.

A nucleic acid that encodes the antibody or antigen binding fragment any of the preceding embodiments.

A vector comprising the nucleic acid any of the preceding embodiments.

A host cell comprising the vector any of the preceding embodiments.

A process for producing an antibody or antigen binding fragment comprising cultivating the host cell and recovering the antibody from the culture.

The antibody or antigen binding fragment produced according to any of the preceding embodiments and conjugated to a drug moiety (D) and linker (L) of Table 1, comprising an average drug to antibody ratio (DAR), measured with a UV spectrophotometer, about 3.5.

An antibody or antigen binding fragment thereof that comprises:

-   -   (i) a heavy chain variable region that comprises (a) a HCDR1         (CDR-Complementarity Determining Region) of SEQ ID NO: 76, (b) a         HCDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 77, (c) a HCDR3 of SEQ ID NO: 78; and a         light chain variable region that comprises: (d) a LCDR1 of SEQ         ID NO: 85, (e) a LCDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 86, and (f) a LCDR3 of SEQ         ID NO: 87;     -   (ii) a heavy chain variable region that comprises (a) a HCDR1 of         SEQ ID NO: 22, (b) a HCDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 23, (c) a HCDR3 of SEQ         ID NO: 24; and a light chain variable region that comprises: (d)         a LCDR1 of SEQ ID NO: 31, (e) a LCDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 32, and (f)         a LCDR3 of SEQ ID NO: 33;     -   (iii) a heavy chain variable region that comprises (a) a HCDR1         of SEQ ID NO: 130, (b) a HCDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 131, (c) a HCDR3 of         SEQ ID NO: 132; and a light chain variable region that         comprises: (d) a LCDR1 of SEQ ID NO: 139, (e) a LCDR2 of SEQ ID         NO: 140, and (f) a LCDR3 of SEQ ID NO: 141;     -   (iv) a heavy chain variable region that comprises: (a) a HCDR1         of SEQ ID NO: 58, (b) a HCDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 59, (c) a HCDR3 of         SEQ ID NO: 60; and a light chain variable region that         comprises: (d) a LCDR1 of SEQ ID NO: 67, (e) a LCDR2 of SEQ ID         NO: 68, and (f) a LCDR3 of SEQ ID NO: 69;     -   (v) a heavy chain variable region that comprises: (a) a HCDR1 of         SEQ ID NO: 40, (b) a HCDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 41, (c) a HCDR3 of SEQ         ID NO: 42; and a light chain variable region that comprises: (d)         a LCDR1 of SEQ ID NO: 49, (e) a LCDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 50, and (f)         a LCDR3 of SEQ ID NO: 51;     -   (vi) a heavy chain variable region that comprises: (a) a HCDR1         of SEQ ID NO: 94, (b) a HCDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 95, (c) a HCDR3 of         SEQ ID NO: 96; and a light chain variable region that         comprises: (d) a LCDR1 of SEQ ID NO: 103, (d) a LCDR2 of SEQ ID         NO: 104, and (f) a LCDR3 of SEQ ID NO: 105;     -   (vii) a heavy chain variable region that comprises: (a) a HCDR1         of SEQ ID NO: 112, (b) a HCDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 113, (c) a HCDR3 of         SEQ ID NO: 114; and a light chain variable region that         comprises: (d) a LCDR1 of SEQ ID NO: 121, (e) a LCDR2 of SEQ ID         NO: 122, and (f) a LCDR3 of SEQ ID NO: 123;     -   (viii) a heavy chain variable region that comprises: (a) a HCDR1         of SEQ ID NO: 3, (b) a HCDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 4, (c) a HCDR3 of SEQ         ID NO: 5; and a light chain variable region that comprises: (d)         a LCDR1 of SEQ ID NO: 12, (e) a LCDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 13, and (f)         a LCDR3 of SEQ ID NO: 14; or     -   (ix) a heavy chain variable region that comprises: (a) a HCDR1         of SEQ ID NO: 148, (b) a HCDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 149, (c) a HCDR3 of         SEQ ID NO: 150; and a light chain variable region that         comprises: (d) a LCDR1 of SEQ ID NO: 157, (e) a LCDR2 of SEQ ID         NO: 158, and (f) a LCDR3 of SEQ ID NO: 159.

A diagnostic reagent comprising the antibody or antigen binding fragment thereof which is labeled.

The diagnostic reagent any of the preceding embodiments, wherein the label is selected from the group consisting of a radiolabel, a fluorophore, a chromophore, an imaging agent, and a metal ion.

Definitions

Unless stated otherwise, the following terms and phrases as used herein are intended to have the following meanings:

The term “alkyl” refers to a monovalent saturated hydrocarbon chain having the specified number of carbon atoms. For example, C₁₋₆ alkyl refers to an alkyl group having from 1 to 6 carbon atoms. Alkyl groups may be straight or branched. Representative branched alkyl groups have one, two, or three branches. Examples of alkyl groups include, but are not limited to, methyl, ethyl, propyl (n-propyl and isopropyl), butyl (n-butyl, isobutyl, sec-butyl, and t-butyl), pentyl (n-pentyl, isopentyl, and neopentyl), and hexyl.

The term “antibody” as used herein refers to a polypeptide of the immunoglobulin family that is capable of binding a corresponding antigen non-covalently, reversibly, and in a specific manner For example, a naturally occurring IgG antibody is a tetramer comprising at least two heavy (H) chains and two light (L) chains inter-connected by disulfide bonds. Each heavy chain is comprised of a heavy chain variable region (abbreviated herein as VH) and a heavy chain constant region. The heavy chain constant region is comprised of three domains, CH1, CH2 and CH3. Each light chain is comprised of a light chain variable region (abbreviated herein as VL) and a light chain constant region. The light chain constant region is comprised of one domain, CL. The VH and VL regions can be further subdivided into regions of hypervariability, termed complementarity determining regions (CDR), interspersed with regions that are more conserved, termed framework regions (FR). Each VH and VL is composed of three CDRs and four FRs arranged from amino-terminus to carboxy-terminus in the following order: FR1, CDR1, FR2, CDR2, FR3, CDR3, and FR4. The variable regions of the heavy and light chains contain a binding domain that interacts with an antigen. The constant regions of the antibodies may mediate the binding of the immunoglobulin to host tissues or factors, including various cells of the immune system (e.g., effector cells) and the first component (Clq) of the classical complement system.

The term “antibody” includes, but is not limited to, monoclonal antibodies, human antibodies, humanized antibodies, camelid antibodies, chimeric antibodies, and anti-idiotypic (anti-Id) antibodies (including, e.g., anti-Id antibodies to antibodies of the present disclosure). The antibodies can be of any isotype/class (e.g., IgG, IgE, IgM, IgD, IgA and IgY), or subclass (e.g., IgG1, IgG2, IgG3, IgG4, IgA1 and IgA2).

“Complementarity-determining domains” or “complementary-determining regions (“CDRs”) interchangeably refer to the hypervariable regions of VL and VH. The CDRs are the target protein-binding site of the antibody chains that harbors specificity for such target protein. There are three CDRs (CDR1-3, numbered sequentially from the N-terminus) in each human VL or VH, constituting about 15-20% of the variable domains. CDRs can be referred to by their region and order. For example, “VHCDR1” or “HCDR1” both refer to the first CDR of the heavy chain variable region. The CDRs are structurally complementary to the epitope of the target protein and are thus directly responsible for the binding specificity. The remaining stretches of the VL or VH, the so-called framework regions, exhibit less variation in amino acid sequence (Kuby, Immunology, 4th ed., Chapter 4. W.H. Freeman & Co., New York, 2000).

The positions of the CDRs and framework regions can be determined using various well known definitions in the art, e.g., Kabat, Chothia, and AbM (see, e.g., Johnson et al., Nucleic Acids Res., 29:205-206 (2001); Chothia and Lesk, J. Mol. Biol., 196:901-917 (1987); Chothia et al., Nature, 342:877-883 (1989); Chothia et al., J. Mol. Biol., 227:799-817 (1992); Al-Lazikani et al., J. Mol. Biol., 273:927-748 (1997)). Definitions of antigen combining sites are also described in the following: Ruiz et al., Nucleic Acids Res., 28:219-221 (2000); and Lefranc, M. P., Nucleic Acids Res., 29:207-209 (2001); MacCallum et al., J. Mol. Biol., 262:732-745 (1996); and Martin et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, 86:9268-9272 (1989); Martin et al., Methods Enzymol., 203:121-153 (1991); and Rees et al., In Sternberg M. J. E. (ed.), Protein Structure Prediction, Oxford University Press, Oxford, 141-172 (1996).

Both the light and heavy chains are divided into regions of structural and functional homology. The terms “constant” and “variable” are used functionally. In this regard, it will be appreciated that the variable domains of both the light (VL) and heavy (VH) chain portions determine antigen recognition and specificity. Conversely, the constant domains of the light chain (CL) and the heavy chain (CH1, CH2 or CH3) confer important biological properties such as secretion, transplacental mobility, Fc receptor binding, complement binding, and the like. By convention, the numbering of the constant region domains increases as they become more distal from the antigen binding site or amino-terminus of the antibody. The N-terminus is a variable region and at the C-terminus is a constant region; the CH3 and CL domains actually comprise the carboxy-terminal domains of the heavy and light chain, respectively.

The term “antigen binding fragment”, as used herein, refers to one or more portions of an antibody that retain the ability to specifically interact with (e.g., by binding, steric hindrance, stabilizing/destabilizing, spatial distribution) an epitope of an antigen. Examples of binding fragments include, but are not limited to, single-chain Fvs (scFv), disulfide-linked Fvs (sdFv), Fab fragments, F(ab′) fragments, a monovalent fragment consisting of the VL, VH, CL and CH1 domains; a F(ab)2 fragment, a bivalent fragment comprising two Fab fragments linked by a disulfide bridge at the hinge region; a Fd fragment consisting of the VH and CH1 domains; a Fv fragment consisting of the VL and VH domains of a single arm of an antibody; a dAb fragment (Ward et al., Nature 341:544-546, 1989), which consists of a VH domain; and an isolated complementarity determining region (CDR), or other epitope-binding fragments of an antibody.

Furthermore, although the two domains of the Fv fragment, VL and VH, are coded for by separate genes, they can be joined, using recombinant methods, by a synthetic linker that enables them to be made as a single protein chain in which the VL and VH regions pair to form monovalent molecules (known as single chain Fv (“scFv”); see, e.g., Bird et al., Science 242:423-426, 1988; and Huston et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. 85:5879-5883, 1988). Such single chain antibodies are also intended to be encompassed within the term “antigen binding fragment.” These antigen binding fragments are obtained using conventional techniques known to those of skill in the art, and the fragments are screened for utility in the same manner as are intact antibodies.

Antigen binding fragments can also be incorporated into single domain antibodies, maxibodies, minibodies, nanobodies, intrabodies, diabodies, triabodies, tetrabodies, v-NAR and bis-scFv (see, e.g., Hollinger and Hudson, Nature Biotechnology 23:1126-1136, 2005). Antigen binding fragments can be grafted into scaffolds based on polypeptides such as fibronectin type III (Fn3) (see U.S. Pat. No. 6,703,199, which describes fibronectin polypeptide monobodies).

Antigen binding fragments can be incorporated into single chain molecules comprising a pair of tandem Fv segments (VH—CH1-VH—CH1) which, together with complementary light chain polypeptides, form a pair of antigen binding regions (Zapata et al., Protein Eng. 8:1057-1062, 1995; and U.S. Pat. No. 5,641,870).

The term “monoclonal antibody” or “monoclonal antibody composition” as used herein refers to polypeptides, including antibodies and antigen binding fragments that have substantially identical amino acid sequence or are derived from the same genetic source. This term also includes preparations of antibody molecules of single molecular composition. A monoclonal antibody composition displays a single binding specificity and affinity for a particular epitope.

The term “human antibody”, as used herein, includes antibodies having variable regions in which both the framework and CDR regions are derived from sequences of human origin. Furthermore, if the antibody contains a constant region, the constant region also is derived from such human sequences, e.g., human germline sequences, or mutated versions of human germline sequences or antibody containing consensus framework sequences derived from human framework sequences analysis, for example, as described in Knappik et al., J. Mol. Biol. 296:57-86, 2000).

The human antibodies of the present disclosure can include amino acid residues not encoded by human sequences (e.g., mutations introduced by random or site-specific mutagenesis in vitro or by somatic mutation in vivo, or a conservative substitution to promote stability or manufacturing).

The term “recognize” as used herein refers to an antibody or antigen binding fragment thereof that finds and interacts (e.g., binds) with its epitope, whether that epitope is linear or conformational. The term “epitope” refers to a site on an antigen to which an antibody or antigen binding fragment of the disclosure specifically binds. Epitopes can be formed both from contiguous amino acids or noncontiguous amino acids juxtaposed by tertiary folding of a protein. Epitopes formed from contiguous amino acids are typically retained on exposure to denaturing solvents, whereas epitopes formed by tertiary folding are typically lost on treatment with denaturing solvents. An epitope typically includes at least 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14 or 15 amino acids in a unique spatial conformation. Methods of determining spatial conformation of epitopes include techniques in the art, for example, x-ray crystallography and 2-dimensional nuclear magnetic resonance (see, e.g., Epitope Mapping Protocols in Methods in Molecular Biology, Vol. 66, G. E. Morris, Ed. (1996)). A “paratope” is the part of the antibody which recognizes the epitope of the antigen.

The phrase “specifically binds” or “selectively binds,” when used in the context of describing the interaction between an antigen (e.g., a protein) and an antibody, antibody fragment, or antibody-derived binding agent, refers to a binding reaction that is determinative of the presence of the antigen in a heterogeneous population of proteins and other biologics, e.g., in a biological sample, e.g., a blood, serum, plasma or tissue sample. Thus, under certain designated immunoassay conditions, the antibodies or binding agents with a particular binding specificity bind to a particular antigen at least two times the background and do not substantially bind in a significant amount to other antigens present in the sample. In one aspect, under designated immunoassay conditions, the antibody or binding agent with a particular binding specificity binds to a particular antigen at least ten (10) times the background and does not substantially bind in a significant amount to other antigens present in the sample. Specific binding to an antibody or binding agent under such conditions may require the antibody or agent to have been selected for its specificity for a particular protein. As desired or appropriate, this selection may be achieved by subtracting out antibodies that cross-react with molecules from other species (e.g., mouse or rat) or other subtypes. Alternatively, in some aspects, antibodies or antibody fragments are selected that cross-react with certain desired molecules.

The term “affinity” as used herein refers to the strength of interaction between antibody and antigen at single antigenic sites. Within each antigenic site, the variable region of the antibody “arm” interacts through weak non-covalent forces with antigen at numerous sites; the more interactions, the stronger the affinity.

The term “isolated antibody” refers to an antibody that is substantially free of other antibodies having different antigenic specificities. An isolated antibody that specifically binds to one antigen may, however, have cross-reactivity to other antigens. Moreover, an isolated antibody may be substantially free of other cellular material and/or chemicals.

The term “corresponding human germline sequence” refers to the nucleic acid sequence encoding a human variable region amino acid sequence or subsequence that shares the highest determined amino acid sequence identity with a reference variable region amino acid sequence or subsequence in comparison to all other all other known variable region amino acid sequences encoded by human germline immunoglobulin variable region sequences. The corresponding human germline sequence can also refer to the human variable region amino acid sequence or subsequence with the highest amino acid sequence identity with a reference variable region amino acid sequence or subsequence in comparison to all other evaluated variable region amino acid sequences. The corresponding human germline sequence can be framework regions only, complementarity determining regions only, framework and complementary determining regions, a variable segment (as defined above), or other combinations of sequences or subsequences that comprise a variable region. Sequence identity can be determined using the methods described herein, for example, aligning two sequences using BLAST, ALIGN, or another alignment algorithm known in the art. The corresponding human germline nucleic acid or amino acid sequence can have at least about 90%, 91%, 92%, 93%, 94%, 95%, 96%, 97%, 98%, 99%, or 100% sequence identity with the reference variable region nucleic acid or amino acid sequence.

A variety of immunoassay formats may be used to select antibodies specifically immunoreactive with a particular protein. For example, solid-phase ELISA immunoassays are routinely used to select antibodies specifically immunoreactive with a protein (see, e.g., Harlow & Lane, Using Antibodies, A Laboratory Manual (1998), for a description of immunoassay formats and conditions that can be used to determine specific immunoreactivity). Typically a specific or selective binding reaction will produce a signal at least twice over the background signal and more typically at least 10 to 100 times over the background.

The term “equilibrium dissociation constant (KD, M)” refers to the dissociation rate constant (kd, time-1) divided by the association rate constant (ka, time-1, M-1). Equilibrium dissociation constants can be measured using any known method in the art. The antibodies of the present disclosure generally will have an equilibrium dissociation constant of less than about 10⁻⁷ or 10⁻⁸ M, for example, less than about 10⁻⁹M or 10⁻¹⁰ M, in some aspects, less than about 10⁻¹¹ M, 10⁻¹² M or 10⁻¹³ M.

The term “bioavailability” refers to the systemic availability (i.e., blood/plasma levels) of a given amount of drug administered to a patient. Bioavailability is an absolute term that indicates measurement of both the time (rate) and total amount (extent) of drug that reaches the general circulation from an administered dosage form.

As used herein, the phrase “consisting essentially of” refers to the genera or species of active pharmaceutical agents included in a method or composition, as well as any excipients inactive for the intended purpose of the methods or compositions. In some aspects, the phrase “consisting essentially of” expressly excludes the inclusion of one or more additional active agents other than an antibody drug conjugate of the present disclosure. In some aspects, the phrase “consisting essentially of” expressly excludes the inclusion of one or more additional active agents other than an antibody drug conjugate of the present disclosure and a second co-administered agent.

The term “amino acid” refers to naturally occurring, synthetic, and unnatural amino acids, as well as amino acid analogs and amino acid mimetics that function in a manner similar to the naturally occurring amino acids. Naturally occurring amino acids are those encoded by the genetic code, as well as those amino acids that are later modified, e.g., hydroxyproline, γ-carboxyglutamate, and O-phosphoserine Amino acid analogs refer to compounds that have the same basic chemical structure as a naturally occurring amino acid, i.e., an α-carbon that is bound to a hydrogen, a carboxyl group, an amino group, and an R group, e.g., homoserine, norleucine, methionine sulfoxide, methionine methyl sulfonium. Such analogs have modified R groups (e.g., norleucine) or modified peptide backbones, but retain the same basic chemical structure as a naturally occurring amino acid. Amino acid mimetics refers to chemical compounds that have a structure that is different from the general chemical structure of an amino acid, but that functions in a manner similar to a naturally occurring amino acid.

The term “conservatively modified variant” applies to both amino acid and nucleic acid sequences. With respect to particular nucleic acid sequences, conservatively modified variants refers to those nucleic acids which encode identical or essentially identical amino acid sequences, or where the nucleic acid does not encode an amino acid sequence, to essentially identical sequences. Because of the degeneracy of the genetic code, a large number of functionally identical nucleic acids encode any given protein. For instance, the codons GCA, GCC, GCG and GCU all encode the amino acid alanine. Thus, at every position where an alanine is specified by a codon, the codon can be altered to any of the corresponding codons described without altering the encoded polypeptide. Such nucleic acid variations are “silent variations,” which are one species of conservatively modified variations. Every nucleic acid sequence herein which encodes a polypeptide also describes every possible silent variation of the nucleic acid. One of skill will recognize that each codon in a nucleic acid (except AUG, which is ordinarily the only codon for methionine, and TGG, which is ordinarily the only codon for tryptophan) can be modified to yield a functionally identical molecule. Accordingly, each silent variation of a nucleic acid that encodes a polypeptide is implicit in each described sequence.

For polypeptide sequences, “conservatively modified variants” include individual substitutions, deletions or additions to a polypeptide sequence which result in the substitution of an amino acid with a chemically similar amino acid. Conservative substitution tables providing functionally similar amino acids are well known in the art. Such conservatively modified variants are in addition to and do not exclude polymorphic variants, interspecies homologs, and alleles. The following eight groups contain amino acids that are conservative substitutions for one another: 1) Alanine (A), Glycine (G); 2) Aspartic acid (D), Glutamic acid (E); 3) Asparagine (N), Glutamine (Q); 4) Arginine (R), Lysine (K); 5) Isoleucine (I), Leucine (L), Methionine (M), Valine (V); 6) Phenylalanine (F), Tyrosine (Y), Tryptophan (W); 7) Serine (S), Threonine (T); and 8) Cysteine (C), Methionine (M) (see, e.g., Creighton, Proteins (1984)). In some aspects, the term “conservative sequence modifications” are used to refer to amino acid modifications that do not significantly affect or alter the binding characteristics of the antibody containing the amino acid sequence.

The term “optimized” as used herein refers to a nucleotide sequence that has been altered to encode an amino acid sequence using codons that are preferred in the production cell or organism, generally a eukaryotic cell, for example, a yeast cell, a Pichia cell, a fungal cell, a Trichoderma cell, a Chinese Hamster Ovary cell (CHO) or a human cell. The optimized nucleotide sequence is engineered to retain completely or as much as possible the amino acid sequence originally encoded by the starting nucleotide sequence, which is also known as the “parental” sequence.

The terms “percent identical” or “percent identity,” in the context of two or more nucleic acids or polypeptide sequences, refers to the extent to which two or more sequences or subsequences that are the same. Two sequences are “identical” if they have the same sequence of amino acids or nucleotides over the region being compared. Two sequences are “substantially identical” if two sequences have a specified percentage of amino acid residues or nucleotides that are the same (i.e., 60% identity, optionally 65%, 70%, 75%, 80%, 85%, 90%, 95%, or 99% identity over a specified region, or, when not specified, over the entire sequence), when compared and aligned for maximum correspondence over a comparison window, or designated region as measured using one of the following sequence comparison algorithms or by manual alignment and visual inspection. Optionally, the identity exists over a region that is at least about 30 nucleotides (or 10 amino acids) in length, or more preferably over a region that is 100 to 500 or 1000 or more nucleotides (or 20, 50, 200 or more amino acids) in length.

For sequence comparison, typically one sequence acts as a reference sequence, to which test sequences are compared. When using a sequence comparison algorithm, test and reference sequences are entered into a computer, subsequence coordinates are designated, if necessary, and sequence algorithm program parameters are designated. Default program parameters can be used, or alternative parameters can be designated. The sequence comparison algorithm then calculates the percent sequence identities for the test sequences relative to the reference sequence, based on the program parameters.

A “comparison window”, as used herein, includes reference to a segment of any one of the number of contiguous positions selected from the group consisting of from 20 to 600, usually about 50 to about 200, more usually about 100 to about 150 in which a sequence may be compared to a reference sequence of the same number of contiguous positions after the two sequences are optimally aligned. Methods of alignment of sequences for comparison are well known in the art. Optimal alignment of sequences for comparison can be conducted, e.g., by the local homology algorithm of Smith and Waterman, Adv. Appl. Math. 2:482c (1970), by the homology alignment algorithm of Needleman and Wunsch, J. Mol. Biol. 48:443 (1970), by the search for similarity method of Pearson and Lipman, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 85:2444 (1988), by computerized implementations of these algorithms (GAP, BESTFIT, FASTA, and TFASTA in the Wisconsin Genetics Software Package, Genetics Computer Group, 575 Science Dr., Madison, WI), or by manual alignment and visual inspection (see, e.g., Brent et al., Current Protocols in Molecular Biology, 2003).

Two examples of algorithms that are suitable for determining percent sequence identity and sequence similarity are the BLAST and BLAST 2.0 algorithms, which are described in Altschul et al., Nuc. Acids Res. 25:3389-3402, 1977; and Altschul et al., J. Mol. Biol. 215:403-410, 1990, respectively. Software for performing BLAST analyses is publicly available through the National Center for Biotechnology Information. This algorithm involves first identifying high scoring sequence pairs (HSPs) by identifying short words of length W in the query sequence, which either match or satisfy some positive-valued threshold score T when aligned with a word of the same length in a database sequence. T is referred to as the neighborhood word score threshold (Altschul et al., supra). These initial neighborhood word hits act as seeds for initiating searches to find longer HSPs containing them. The word hits are extended in both directions along each sequence for as far as the cumulative alignment score can be increased. Cumulative scores are calculated using, for nucleotide sequences, the parameters M (reward score for a pair of matching residues; always >0) and N (penalty score for mismatching residues; always <0). For amino acid sequences, a scoring matrix is used to calculate the cumulative score. Extension of the word hits in each direction are halted when: the cumulative alignment score falls off by the quantity X from its maximum achieved value; the cumulative score goes to zero or below, due to the accumulation of one or more negative-scoring residue alignments; or the end of either sequence is reached. The BLAST algorithm parameters W, T, and X determine the sensitivity and speed of the alignment. The BLASTN program (for nucleotide sequences) uses as defaults a word length (W) of 11, an expectation (E) or 10, M=5, N=−4 and a comparison of both strands. For amino acid sequences, the BLASTP program uses as defaults a word length of 3, and expectation (E) of 10, and the BLOSUM62 scoring matrix (see Henikoff and Henikoff, (1989) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 89:10915) alignments (B) of 50, expectation (E) of 10, M=5, N=−4, and a comparison of both strands.

The BLAST algorithm also performs a statistical analysis of the similarity between two sequences (see, e.g., Karlin and Altschul, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 90:5873-5787, 1993). One measure of similarity provided by the BLAST algorithm is the smallest sum probability (P(N)), which provides an indication of the probability by which a match between two nucleotide or amino acid sequences would occur by chance. For example, a nucleic acid is considered similar to a reference sequence if the smallest sum probability in a comparison of the test nucleic acid to the reference nucleic acid is less than about 0.2, more preferably less than about 0.01, and most preferably less than about 0.001.

The percent identity between two amino acid sequences can also be determined using the algorithm of E. Meyers and W. Miller, Comput. Appl. Biosci. 4:11-17, (1988) which has been incorporated into the ALIGN program (version 2.0), using a PAM120 weight residue table, a gap length penalty of 12 and a gap penalty of 4. In addition, the percent identity between two amino acid sequences can be determined using the Needleman and Wunsch, J. Mol. Biol. 48:444-453, (1970) algorithm which has been incorporated into the GAP program in the GCG software package (available at www.gcg.com), using either a Blossom 62 matrix or a PAM250 matrix, and a gap weight of 16, 14, 12, 10, 8, 6, or 4 and a length weight of 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, or 6.

Other than percentage of sequence identity noted above, another indication that two nucleic acid sequences or polypeptides are substantially identical is that the polypeptide encoded by the first nucleic acid is immunologically cross reactive with the antibodies raised against the polypeptide encoded by the second nucleic acid, as described below. Thus, a polypeptide is typically substantially identical to a second polypeptide, for example, where the two peptides differ only by conservative substitutions. Another indication that two nucleic acid sequences are substantially identical is that the two molecules or their complements hybridize to each other under stringent conditions, as described below. Yet another indication that two nucleic acid sequences are substantially identical is that the same primers can be used to amplify the sequence.

The term “nucleic acid” is used herein interchangeably with the term “polynucleotide” and refers to deoxyribonucleotides or ribonucleotides and polymers thereof in either single- or double-stranded form. The term encompasses nucleic acids containing known nucleotide analogs or modified backbone residues or linkages, which are synthetic, naturally occurring, and non-naturally occurring, which have similar binding properties as the reference nucleic acid, and which are metabolized in a manner similar to the reference nucleotides. Examples of such analogs include, without limitation, phosphorothioates, phosphoramidates, methyl phosphonates, chiral-methyl phosphonates, 2-O-methyl ribonucleotides, peptide-nucleic acids (PNAs).

Unless otherwise indicated, a particular nucleic acid sequence also implicitly encompasses conservatively modified variants thereof (e.g., degenerate codon substitutions) and complementary sequences, as well as the sequence explicitly indicated. Specifically, as detailed below, degenerate codon substitutions may be achieved by generating sequences in which the third position of one or more selected (or all) codons is substituted with mixed-base and/or deoxyinosine residues (Batzer et al., (1991) Nucleic Acid Res. 19:5081; Ohtsuka et al., (1985) J. Biol. Chem. 260:2605-2608; and Rossolini et al., (1994) Mol. Cell. Probes 8:91-98).

The term “operably linked” in the context of nucleic acids refers to a functional relationship between two or more polynucleotide (e.g., DNA) segments. Typically, it refers to the functional relationship of a transcriptional regulatory sequence to a transcribed sequence. For example, a promoter or enhancer sequence is operably linked to a coding sequence if it stimulates or modulates the transcription of the coding sequence in an appropriate host cell or other expression system. Generally, promoter transcriptional regulatory sequences that are operably linked to a transcribed sequence are physically contiguous to the transcribed sequence, i.e., they are cis-acting. However, some transcriptional regulatory sequences, such as enhancers, need not be physically contiguous or located in close proximity to the coding sequences whose transcription they enhance.

The terms “polypeptide” and “protein” are used interchangeably herein to refer to a polymer of amino acid residues. The terms apply to amino acid polymers in which one or more amino acid residue is an artificial chemical mimetic of a corresponding naturally occurring amino acid, as well as to naturally occurring amino acid polymers and non-naturally occurring amino acid polymer. Unless otherwise indicated, a particular polypeptide sequence also implicitly encompasses conservatively modified variants thereof.

The term “immunoconjugate” or “antibody drug conjugate” as used herein refers to the linkage of an antibody or an antigen binding fragment thereof with another agent, such as a chemotherapeutic agent, a toxin, an immunotherapeutic agent, an imaging probe, and the like. The linkage can be covalent bonds, or non-covalent interactions such as through electrostatic forces. Various linkers, known in the art, can be employed in order to form the immunoconjugate. Additionally, the immunoconjugate can be provided in the form of a fusion protein that may be expressed from a polynucleotide encoding the immunoconjugate. As used herein, “fusion protein” refers to proteins created through the joining of two or more genes or gene fragments which originally coded for separate proteins (including peptides and polypeptides). Translation of the fusion gene results in a single protein with functional properties derived from each of the original proteins.

The term “subject” includes human and non-human animals Non-human animals include all vertebrates, e.g., mammals and non-mammals, such as non-human primates, sheep, dog, cow, chickens, amphibians, and reptiles. Except when noted, the terms “patient” or “subject” are used herein interchangeably.

The term “toxin,” “cytotoxin” or “cytotoxic agent” as used herein, refers to any agent that is detrimental to the growth and proliferation of cells and may act to reduce, inhibit, or destroy a cell or malignancy.

The term “anti-cancer agent” as used herein refers to any agent that can be used to treat a cell proliferative disorder such as cancer, including but not limited to, cytotoxic agents, chemotherapeutic agents, radiotherapy and radiotherapeutic agents, targeted anti-cancer agents, and immunotherapeutic agents.

The term “drug moiety” or “payload” as used herein refers to a chemical moiety that is conjugated to an antibody or antigen binding fragment, and can include any therapeutic or diagnostic agent, for example, an anti-cancer, anti-inflammatory, anti-infective (e.g., anti-fungal, antibacterial, anti-parasitic, anti-viral), or an anesthetic agent. In certain aspects, a drug moiety is selected from an Eg5 inhibitor, a V-ATPase inhibitor, a HSP90 inhibitor, an IAP inhibitor, an mTor inhibitor, a microtubule stabilizer, a microtubule destabilizer, an auristatin, a dolastatin, a MetAP (methionine aminopeptidase), an inhibitor of nuclear export of proteins CRM1, a DPPIV inhibitor, an inhibitor of phosphoryl transfer reactions in mitochondria, a protein synthesis inhibitor, a kinase inhibitor, a CDK2 inhibitor, a CDK9 inhibitor, a proteasome inhibitor, a kinesin inhibitor, an HDAC inhibitor, a DNA damaging agent, a DNA alkylating agent, a DNA intercalator, a DNA minor groove binder, an RNA polymerase inhibitor, a topoisomerase inhibitor and a DHFR inhibitor. Methods for attaching each of these to a linker compatible with the antibodies and method of the present disclosure are known in the art. See, e.g., Singh et al., (2009) Therapeutic Antibodies: Methods and Protocols, vol. 525, 445-457. In addition, a payload can be a biophysical probe, a fluorophore, a spin label, an infrared probe, an affinity probe, a chelator, a spectroscopic probe, a radioactive probe, a lipid molecule, a polyethylene glycol, a polymer, a spin label, DNA, RNA, a protein, a peptide, a surface, an antibody, an antibody fragment, a nanoparticle, a quantum dot, a liposome, a PLGA particle, a saccharide or a polysaccharide.

“Eg5,” “kinesin-like protein (KIF11),” “kinesin-like spindle protein (KSP),” and “TRIPS” refer to a 1056 amino acid protein, Genbank Accession number U37426. Eg5 is a motor protein involved cross linking of microtubules during mitosis, and is required for cell division (Rapley et al., J. Cell Sci. 2008, 121:3912-3921).

“Tumor” refers to neoplastic cell growth and proliferation, whether malignant or benign, and all pre-cancerous and cancerous cells and tissues.

The term “anti-tumor activity” means a reduction in the rate of tumor cell proliferation, viability, or metastatic activity. A possible way of showing anti-tumor activity is to show a decline in growth rate of tumor cells, tumor size stasis or tumor size reduction. Such activity can be assessed using accepted in vitro or in vivo tumor models, including but not limited to xenograft models, allograft models, MMTV models, and other known models known in the art to investigate anti-tumor activity.

The term “malignancy” refers to a non-benign tumor or a cancer. As used herein, the term “cancer” includes a malignancy characterized by deregulated or uncontrolled cell growth. Exemplary cancers include: carcinomas, sarcomas, leukemias, and lymphomas.

The term “cancer” includes primary malignant tumors (e.g., those whose cells have not migrated to sites in the subject's body other than the site of the original tumor) and secondary malignant tumors (e.g., those arising from metastasis, the migration of tumor cells to secondary sites that are different from the site of the original tumor).

The term “cKIT” refers to a tyrosine kinase receptor that is a member of the receptor tyrosine kinase III family. The nucleic acid and amino acid sequences of cKIT are known, and have been published in GenBank Accession Nos. X06182.1. See also SEQ ID NO:1 for the human cKIT cDNA sequence and SEQ ID NO:2 for the human cKIT protein sequence. Structurally, cKIT receptor is a type I transmembrane protein and contains a signal peptide, 5 Ig-like C2 domains in the extracellular domain and has a protein kinase domain in its intracellular domain and has over its full length at least about 90%, 91%, 92%, 93%, 94%, 95%, 96%, 97%, 98%, 99%, or 100% sequence identity with the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO:2. Structurally, a cKIT nucleic acid sequence has over its full length at least about 90%, 91%, 92%, 93%, 94%, 95%, 96%, 97%, 98%, 99%, or 100% sequence identity with the nucleic acid sequence of SEQ ID NO 1.

The terms “cKIT expressing cancer” or “cKIT positive cancer” refers to a cancer that express cKIT and/or a mutant form of cKIT on the surface of cancer cells.

As used herein, the terms “treat,” “treating,” or “treatment” of any disease or disorder refer in one aspect, to ameliorating the disease or disorder (i.e., slowing or arresting or reducing the development of the disease or at least one of the clinical symptoms thereof). In another aspect, “treat,” “treating,” or “treatment” refers to alleviating or ameliorating at least one physical parameter including those which may not be discernible by the patient. In yet another aspect, “treat,” “treating,” or “treatment” refers to modulating the disease or disorder, either physically, (e.g., stabilization of a discernible symptom), physiologically, (e.g., stabilization of a physical parameter), or both. In yet another aspect, “treat,” “treating,” or “treatment” refers to preventing or delaying the onset or development or progression of the disease or disorder.

The term “therapeutically acceptable amount” or “therapeutically effective dose” interchangeably refers to an amount sufficient to effect the desired result (i.e., a reduction in tumor size, inhibition of tumor growth, prevention of metastasis, inhibition or prevention of viral, bacterial, fungal or parasitic infection). In some aspects, a therapeutically acceptable amount does not induce or cause undesirable side effects. A therapeutically acceptable amount can be determined by first administering a low dose, and then incrementally increasing that dose until the desired effect is achieved. A “prophylactically effective dosage,” and a “therapeutically effective dosage,” of the molecules of the present disclosure can prevent the onset of, or result in a decrease in severity of, respectively, disease symptoms, including symptoms associated with cancer.

The term “co-administer” refers to the simultaneous presence of two active agents in the blood of an individual. Active agents that are co-administered can be concurrently or sequentially delivered.

The term ‘thiol-maleimide’ as used herein refers to a group formed by reaction of a thiol with maleimide, having this general formula:

where Y and Z are groups to be connected via the thiol-maleimide linkage and can comprise linker components, antibodies or payloads.

‘Cleavable’ as used herein refers to a linking group or linker component that connects two moieties by covalent connections, but breaks down to sever the covalent connection between the moieties under physiologically relevant conditions, typically a cleavable linking group is severed in vivo more rapidly in an intracellular environment than when outside a cell, causing release of the payload to preferentially occur inside a targeted cell. Cleavage may be enzymatic or non-enzymatic, but generally releases a payload from an antibody without degrading the antibody. Cleavage may leave some portion of a linking group or linker component attached to the payload, or it may release the payload without any residue of the linking group.

‘Non-cleavable’ as used herein refers to a linking group or linker component that is not especially susceptible to breaking down under physiological conditions, e.g., it is at least as stable as the antibody or antigen binding fragment portion of the immunoconjugate. Such linking groups are sometimes referred to as ‘stable’, meaning they are sufficiently resistant to degradation to keep the payload connected to antibody or antigen binding fragment until the antibody or antigen binding fragment is itself at least partially degraded, i.e., the degradation of the antibody or antigen binding fragment precedes cleavage of the linking group in vivo. Degradation of the antibody portion of an ADC having a stable or non-cleavable linking group may leave some or all of the linking group, e.g., one or more amino acid groups from an antibody, attached to the payload or drug moiety that is delivered in vivo.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is HDx-MS raw data plotted as the corrected difference over the standard error in measurement. A more negative value indicates more protection from deuterium exchange upon binding of the anti-cKIT antibody 9P3 to cKIT antigen. The two most significant regions of protection are denoted as Region 1 and Region 2.

FIG. 2 shows regions of HDx-MS protection are mapped using surface fill: region 1 (black) and region 2 (dark grey). SCF binding sites are denoted as Site I (light grey spheres), Site II (medium grey spheres), and Site III (darker grey spheres).

FIG. 3 is a representation of the crystal structure of the NEG085 Fab in complex with cKIT domains 1 and 2. Fab heavy chains are in dark grey, Fab light chains are in white and cKIT domains are in light grey. Epitopes and paratopes are in black.

FIGS. 4A and 4B shows that NEG085 and 20376 Abs mediate rapid internalization of surface cKIT on GIST-T1 cells (A) and on human bone marrow cells (B).

FIG. 5 shows that NEG085 or 20376 antibodies do not induce ADCC in vitro in Uke-1 cells.

FIG. 6 shows NEG085 and 20376 do not mediate primary human mast cell apoptosis.

FIG. 7 shows NEG085 and 20376 do not mediate primary human mast cell degranulation.

FIG. 8A/B demonstrates that anti-cKIT antibodies conjugated to Eg5 inhibitor payload have dose dependent efficacy in a small cell lung cancer mouse model.

FIG. 9 is a depiction of a dual-flank xenograft mouse model that demonstrates the specificity of anti-cKIT-Eg5 inhibitor ADCs.

FIG. 10A/B shows the efficacy of anti-cKIT antibodies specifically conjugated to an Eg5 inhibitor payload in a small cell lung cancer mouse model.

FIG. 11A graphically depicts the efficacy and body weight change of an anti-cKIT antibody conjugated to different Eg5 inhibitor payloads at a dose of 5 mg/kg in a small cell lung cancer xenograft mouse model.

FIG. 11B graphically depicts the efficacy and body weight change of an anti-cKIT antibody conjugated to different Eg5 inhibitor payloads at a dose of 10 mg/kg in a small cell lung cancer xenograft mouse model.

FIG. 12 is a graph of an anti-cKIT antibody and TBS antibody with site directed conjugations and Eg5 inhibitor payloads in a small cell lung cancer mouse model.

FIG. 13 is a graph of NEG085 antibody conjugated to different Eg5 inhibitor payloads showing efficacy in small cell lung cancer cells.

FIG. 14 is a graph depicting efficacy of different NEG085-Eg5 inhibitor payloads in a small cell lung cancer mouse xenograft model.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The present disclosure provides for antibodies, antibody fragments (e.g., antigen binding fragments), and antibody drug conjugates that bind to cKIT. In particular, the present disclosure is directed to antibodies and antibody fragments (e.g., antigen binding fragments) that bind to cKIT, and internalize upon such binding. The antibodies and antibody fragments (e.g., antigen binding fragments) of the present disclosure can be used for producing antibody drug conjugates. Furthermore, the present disclosure provides antibody drug conjugates that have desirable pharmacokinetic characteristics and other desirable attributes, and thus can be used for treating cancer expressing cKIT, without limitation, for example: gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST), small cell lung cancer (SCLC), acute myeloid leukemia (AML), melanoma, mast cell leukemia (MCL), mastocytosis, neurofibromatosis, breast cancer, non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and pancreatic cancer. The present disclosure further provides pharmaceutical compositions comprising the antibody drug conjugates, and methods of making and using such pharmaceutical compositions for the treatment of cancer.

Antibody Drug Conjugates

The present disclosure provides antibody drug conjugates, where an antibody, antigen binding fragment or its functional equivalent that specifically binds to cKIT is linked to a drug moiety. In one aspect, the antibodies, antigen binding fragments or their functional equivalents are linked, via covalent attachment by a linker, to a drug moiety that is an anti-cancer agent. The antibody drug conjugates can selectively deliver an effective dose of an anti-cancer agent (e.g., a cytotoxic agent) to tumor tissues expressing cKIT, whereby greater selectivity (and lower efficacious dose) may be achieved.

In one aspect, the disclosure provides for an immunoconjugate of Formula (I): Ab-(L-(D)_(m))_(n) Wherein Ab represents an cKIT binding antibody or antibody fragment (e.g., antigen binding fragment) described herein;

-   -   L is a linker;     -   D is a drug moiety;     -   m is an integer from 1-8; and     -   n is an integer from 1-10. In one aspect, n is an integer from 1         to 10, 2 to 8, or 2 to 5. In a specific aspect, n is 3 to 4. In         some aspects, m is 1. In some aspects, m is 2, 3 or 4.

While the drug to antibody ratio has an exact integer value for a specific conjugate molecule (e.g., n multiplied by m in Formula (I)), it is understood that the value will often be an average value when used to describe a sample containing many molecules, due to some degree of inhomogeneity, typically associated with the conjugation step. The average loading for a sample of an immunoconjugate is referred to herein as the drug to antibody ratio, or “DAR.” In some aspects, the DAR is between about 1 and about 5, and typically is about 3, 3.5, 4, 4.5, or 5. In some aspects, at least 50% of a sample by weight is compound having the average DAR plus or minus 2, and preferably at least 50% of the sample is a conjugate that contains the average DAR plus or minus 1. Other aspects include immunoconjugates wherein the DAR is about 3.5. In some aspects, a DAR of ‘about n’ means the measured value for DAR is within 20% of n.

The present disclosure provides immunoconjugates comprising the antibodies, antibody fragments (e.g., antigen binding fragments) and their functional equivalents as disclosed herein, linked or conjugated to a drug moiety. In one aspect, the drug moiety D is an Eg5 inhibitor, including those having the structure of 5B, 5E, 5F, 5C, 5A or 5D in Table 1, where the wavy line indicates the covalent attachment of the sulfur atom of the Eg5 inhibitor/linker combination to a linker of an antibody (antiB).

The drug moiety D can be linked to the antibody through a linker L. L is any chemical moiety that is capable of linking the antibody Ab to the drug moiety D. The linker, L attaches the antibody Ab to the drug D through covalents bond(s). The linker reagent is a bifunctional or multifunctional moiety which can be used to link a drug moiety D and an antibody Ab to form antibody drug conjugates. Antibody drug conjugates can be prepared using a linker having a reactive functionality for binding to the drug moiety D and to the antibody. A cysteine, thiol or an amine, e.g. N-terminus or amino acid side chain such as lysine of the antibody Ab can form a bond with a functional group of a linker reagent.

In one aspect, L is a cleavable linker. In another aspect, L is a non-cleavable linker. In some aspects, L is an acid-labile linker, photo-labile linker, peptidase cleavable linker, esterase cleavable linker, a disulfide bond reducible linker, a hydrophilic linker, a procharged linker, or a dicarboxylic acid based linker.

In one aspect, the average molar ratio of Eg5 inhibitor to the antibody in the conjugate (i.e., average w value, also known as Drug Antibody Ratio (DAR)) is about 1 to about 10, about 2 to about 8 (e.g., 1.9, 2.0, 2.1, 2.2, 2.3, 2.4, 2.5, 2.6, 2.7, 2.8, 2.9, 3.0, 3.1, 3.2, 3.3, 3.4, 3.5, 3.6, 3.7, 3.8, 3.9, 4.0, 4.1, 4.2, 4.3, 4.4, 4.5, 4.6, 4.7, 4.8, 4.9, 5.0, 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 5.4, 5.5, 5.6, 5.7, 5.8, 5.9, 6.0, 6.1, 6.2, 6.3, 6.4, 6.5, 6.6, 6.7, 6.8, 6.9, 7.0, 7.1, 7.2, 7.3, 7.4, 7.5, 7.6, 7.7, 7.8, 7.9, 8.0, or 8.1), about 2.5 to about 7, about 3 to about 5, about 2.5 to about 4.5 (e.g., about 2.5, about 2.6, about 2.7, about 2.8, about 2.9, about 3.0, about 3.1, about 3.3, about 3.4, about 3.5, about 3.6, about 3.7, about 3.8, about 3.9, about 4.0, about 4.1, about 4.2, about 4.3, about 4.4, about 4.5), about 3.0 to about 4.0, about 3.2 to about 4.2, or about 4.5 to 5.5 (e.g., about 4.5, about 4.6, about 4.7, about 4.8, about 4.9, about 5.0, about 5.1, about 5.2, about 5.3, about 5.4, or about 5.5).

In one aspect provided by the disclosure, the conjugate has substantially high purity and has one or more of the following features: (a) greater than about 90% (e.g., greater than or equal to about 91%, 92%, 93%, 94%, 95%, 96%, 97%, 98%, 99%, or 100%), preferably greater than about 95%, of conjugate species are monomeric, (b) unconjugated linker level in the conjugate preparation is less than about 10% (e.g., less than or equal to about 9%, 8%, 7%, 6%, 5%, 4%, 3%, 2%, 1%, or 0%) (relative to total linker), (c) less than 10% of conjugate species are crosslinked (e.g., less than or equal to about 9%, 8%, 7%, 6%, 5%, 4%, 3%, 2%, 1%, or 0%), (d) free drug (e.g., Eg5 inhibitor) level in the conjugate preparation is less than about 2% (e.g., less than or equal to about 1.5%, 1.4%, 1.3%, 1.2%, 1.1%, 1.0%, 0.9%, 0.8%, 0.7%, 0.6%, 0.5%, 0.4%, 0.3%, 0.2%, 0.1%, or 0%) (mol/mol relative to total cytotoxic agent).

1. Drug Moiety

The present disclosure provides immunoconjugates that specifically bind to cKIT. The immunoconjugates of the present disclosure comprise anti-cKIT antibodies, antibody fragments (e.g., antigen binding fragments) or functional equivalents that are conjugated to a drug moiety, e.g., an anti-cancer agent, anti-hematological disorder agent, an autoimmune treatment agent, an anti-inflammatory agent, an antifungal agent, an antibacterial agent, an anti-parasitic agent, an anti-viral agent, or an anesthetic agent. The antibodies, antibody fragments (e.g., antigen binding fragments) or functional equivalents can be conjugated to several identical or different drug moieties using any methods known in the art.

In certain aspects, the drug moiety of the immunoconjugates of the present disclosure is selected from a group consisting of an Eg5 inhibitor, a V-ATPase inhibitor, a pro-apoptotic agent, a Bcl2 inhibitor, an MCL1 inhibitor, a HSP90 inhibitor, an IAP inhibitor, an mTor inhibitor, a microtubule stabilizer, a microtubule destabilizer, an auristatin, a dolastatin, an amatoxin, an amanitin, a MetAP (methionine aminopeptidase), an inhibitor of nuclear export of proteins CRM1, a DPPIV inhibitor, proteasome inhibitors, an inhibitor of phosphoryl transfer reactions in mitochondria, a protein synthesis inhibitor, a kinase inhibitor, a CDK2 inhibitor, a CDK9 inhibitor, a kinesin inhibitor, an HDAC inhibitor, a DNA damaging agent, a DNA alkylating agent, a DNA intercalator, a DNA minor groove binder, an RNA polymerase inhibitor, a topoisomerase inhibitor and a DHFR inhibitor.

Eg5, also known as kinesin spindle protein or KSP, is a kinesin motor protein, involved in cross-linking of microtubules during mitosis, and is thus required for cell division. Inhibitors of Eg5 are known to be useful to treat cell proliferation disorders like cancer (Rath and Kozielski, Nature Rev. Cancer, vol. 12, 527-39 (2012); see also WO06/002236, WO2007/021794, WO2008/063912, WO2009/077448, WO2011/128381, WO2011/128388, and WO2006/049835). While a number of different chemical families of Eg5 inhibitors are known, they have not heretofore been used in ADCs. The present invention includes use of Eg5 inhibitors as drug payloads for ADCs, and novel Eg5 inhibitors that are useful as ADC payloads and as small-molecule pharmaceuticals. The invention further includes methods and intermediates useful for incorporating certain Eg5 inhibitors into ADCs, and methods to use the novel compounds and conjugates to treat cell proliferation disorders.

Examples of Eg5 inhibitors include: ispinesib, SB-743921, AZD4877, ARQ621, ARRY-520, LY2523355, MK-0731, EMD534085, and GSK-923295, and Eg5 inhibitors described in WO06/002236, WO2007/021794, WO2008/063912, WO2009/077448, WO2011/128381, WO2011/128388, and WO2006/049835. Other Eg5 inhibitors known in the art that could be adapted for use as ADC payloads include, for example, compounds disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,504,405, 7,939,539, and in FIG. 3 of Rath and Kozielski, Nature Reviews: Cancer, vol. 12, 527-39 (August 2012).

In one aspect, the drug moiety of the immunoconjugates of the present disclosure is an Eg5 inhibitor, such as but not limited to, the Eg5 inhibitor/linker combinations disclosed in Table 1. These payloads are also disclosed in PCT/US2014/024795.

Immunoconjugates include immunoconjugates comprising any of the payload/linkers in Table 1 conjugated with an antibody (AntiB), where the conjugate has the structure shown in Table 1, wherein AntiB-S-represents an antibody bonded to the maleimide ring via a sulfur atom (S in the structure) of a cysteine residue of the anti-cKIT antibody.

TABLE 1 Payload/Linker Combinations and Conjugates. No. Payload + Linker 5A

5B

5C

5D

5E

5F

No. Antibody (AntiB) Drug Conjugate 5A

5B

5C

5D

5E

5F

Eg5 inhibitors for use as ADC payloads can be attached to the linker or directly to the antibody at various positions on the inhibitor. Any available valence on the Eg5 inhibitors can be attached to a linker, but for convenient preparation of the conjugate attachment to the linker typically occurs at a heteroatom (N, O or S). In some embodiments, the Eg5 inhibitor comprises a free —NH— or free —OH or free —SH, which is used to attach the compound to a linker. Note that the free —NH— can be an amino group (—NH₂), cyclic amine (e.g., —NH— in a cyclic group such as pyrrolidone, piperidine, or morpholine), or a secondary acyclic amine; in each case, the —NH— group is preferably not part of an amide or conjugated to a carbonyl or to an aryl or heteroaryl ring, which would reduce its reactivity.

Further, the antibodies, antibody fragments (e.g., antigen binding fragments) or functional equivalents of the present disclosure may be conjugated to a drug moiety that modifies a given biological response. Drug moieties are not to be construed as limited to classical chemical therapeutic agents. For example, the drug moiety may be a protein, peptide, or polypeptide possessing a desired biological activity. Such proteins may include, for example, a toxin such as abrin, ricin A, pseudomonas exotoxin, cholera toxin, or diphtheria toxin, a protein such as tumor necrosis factor, α-interferon, β-interferon, nerve growth factor, platelet derived growth factor, tissue plasminogen activator, a cytokine, an apoptotic agent, an anti-angiogenic agent, or, a biological response modifier such as, for example, a lymphokine.

In one aspect, the antibodies, antibody fragments (e.g., antigen binding fragments) or functional equivalents of the present disclosure are conjugated to a drug moiety, such as a cytotoxin, a drug (e.g., an immunosuppressant) or a radiotoxin. Examples of cytotoxin include but are not limited to, taxanes (see, e.g., International (PCT) Patent Application Nos. WO 01/38318 and PCT/US03/02675), DNA-alkylating agents (e.g., CC-1065 analogs), anthracyclines, amantins, tubulysin analogs, duocarmycin analogs, auristatin E, auristatin F, and cytotoxic agents comprising a reactive polyethylene glycol moiety (see, e.g., Sasse et al., J. Antibiot. (Tokyo), 53, 879-85 (2000), Suzawa et al., Bioorg. Med. Chem., 8, 2175-84 (2000), Ichimura et al., J. Antibiot. (Tokyo), 44, 1045-53 (1991), Francisco et al., Blood 2003 15; 102(4):1458-65), U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,475,092, 6,340,701, 6,372,738, and 6,436,931, U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2001/0036923 A1, Pending U.S. patent application Ser. Nos. 10/024,290 and 10/116,053, and International (PCT) Patent Application No. WO 01/49698), taxon, cytochalasin B, gramicidin D, emetine, mitomycin, etoposide, tenoposide, vincristine, vinblastine, colchicin, doxorubicin, daunorubicin, dihydroxy anthracin dione, mitoxantrone, mithramycin, actinomycin D, 1-dehydrotestosterone, glucocorticoids, procaine, tetracaine, lidocaine, propranolol, and puromycin and analogs or homologs thereof. Therapeutic agents also include, for example, anti-metabolites (e.g., methotrexate, 6-mercaptopurine, 6-thioguanine, cytarabine, 5-fluorouracil decarbazine), ablating agents (e.g., mechlorethamine, thiotepa chlorambucil, meiphalan, carmustine (BSNU) and lomustine (CCNU), cyclophosphamide, busulfan, dibromomannitol, streptozotocin, mitomycin C, and cis-dichlorodiamine platinum (II) (DDP) cisplatin, anthracyclines (e.g., daunorubicin (formerly daunomycin) and doxorubicin), antibiotics (e.g., dactinomycin (formerly actinomycin), bleomycin, mithramycin, and anthramycin (AMC), and anti-mitotic agents (e.g., vincristine and vinblastine). (See e.g., Seattle Genetics US20090304721).

Other examples of cytotoxins that can be conjugated to the antibodies, antibody fragments (antigen binding fragments) or functional equivalents of the present disclosure include duocarmycins, calicheamicins, and auristatins, and derivatives thereof.

Various types of cytotoxins, linkers and methods for conjugating therapeutic agents to antibodies are known in the art, see, e.g., Saito et al., (2003) Adv. Drug Deliv. Rev. 55:199-215; Trail et al., (2003) Cancer Immunol. Immunother. 52:328-337; Payne, (2003) Cancer Cell 3:207-212; Allen, (2002) Nat. Rev. Cancer 2:750-763; Pastan and Kreitman, (2002) Curr. Opin. Investig. Drugs 3:1089-1091; Senter and Springer, (2001) Adv. Drug Deliv. Rev. 53:247-264.

The antibodies, antibody fragments (e.g., antigen binding fragments) or functional equivalents of the present disclosure can also be conjugated to a radioactive isotope to generate cytotoxic radiopharmaceuticals, referred to as radioimmunoconjugates. Examples of radioactive isotopes that can be conjugated to antibodies for use diagnostically or therapeutically include, but are not limited to, iodine-131, indium-111, yttrium-90, and lutetium-177. Methods for preparing radioimmunoconjugates are established in the art. Examples of radioimmunoconjugates are commercially available, including Zevalin™ (IDEC Pharmaceuticals) and Bexxar™ (Corixa Pharmaceuticals), and similar methods can be used to prepare radioimmunoconjugates using the antibodies disclosed herein. In certain aspects, the macrocyclic chelator is 1,4,7,10-tetraazacyclododecane-N,N′,N″,N′″-tetraacetic acid (DOTA) which can be attached to the antibody via a linker molecule. Such linker molecules are commonly known in the art and described in Denardo et al., (1998) Clin Cancer Res. 4(10):2483-90; Peterson et al., (1999) Bioconjug. Chem. 10(4):553-7; and Zimmerman et al., (1999) Nucl. Med. Biol. 26(8):943-50.

The antibodies, antibody fragments (e.g., antigen binding fragments) or functional equivalents of the present disclosure can also conjugated to a heterologous protein or polypeptide (or fragment thereof, preferably to a polypeptide of at least 10, at least 20, at least 30, at least 40, at least 50, at least 60, at least 70, at least 80, at least 90 or at least 100 amino acids) to generate fusion proteins. In particular, the present disclosure provides fusion proteins comprising an antibody fragment (e.g., antigen binding fragment) described herein (e.g., a Fab fragment, Fd fragment, Fv fragment, F(ab)2 fragment, a VH domain, a VH CDR, a VL domain or a VL CDR) and a heterologous protein, polypeptide, or peptide.

Additional fusion proteins may be generated through the techniques of gene-shuffling, motif-shuffling, exon-shuffling, and/or codon-shuffling (collectively referred to as “DNA shuffling”). DNA shuffling may be employed to alter the activities of antibodies of the present disclosure or fragments thereof (e.g., antibodies or fragments thereof with higher affinities and lower dissociation rates). See, generally, U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,605,793, 5,811,238, 5,830,721, 5,834,252, and 5,837,458; Patten et al., (1997) Curr. Opinion Biotechnol. 8:724-33; Harayama, (1998) Trends Biotechnol. 16(2):76-82; Hansson et al., (1999) J. Mol. Biol. 287:265-76; and Lorenzo and Blasco, (1998) Biotechniques 24(2):308-313 (each of these patents and publications are hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety). Antibodies or fragments thereof, or the encoded antibodies or fragments thereof, may be altered by being subjected to random mutagenesis by error-prone PCR, random nucleotide insertion or other methods prior to recombination. A polynucleotide encoding an antibody or fragment thereof that specifically binds to an antigen may be recombined with one or more components, motifs, sections, parts, domains, fragments, etc. of one or more heterologous molecules.

Moreover, the antibodies, antibody fragments (e.g., antigen binding fragments) or functional equivalents of the present disclosure can be conjugated to marker sequences, such as a peptide, to facilitate purification. In preferred aspects, the marker amino acid sequence is a hexa-histidine peptide, such as the tag provided in a pQE vector (QIAGEN, Inc., Chatsworth, CA, 91311), among others, many of which are commercially available. As described in Gentz et al., (1989) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 86:821-824, for instance, hexa-histidine provides for convenient purification of the fusion protein. Other peptide tags useful for purification include, but are not limited to, the hemagglutinin (“HA”) tag, which corresponds to an epitope derived from the influenza hemagglutinin protein (Wilson et al., (1984) Cell 37:767), and the “FLAG” tag (A. Einhauer et al., J. Biochem. Biophys. Methods 49: 455-465, 2001). As described in the present disclosure, antibodies or antigen binding fragments can also be conjugated to tumor-penetrating peptides in order to enhance their efficacy.

In other aspects, the antibodies, antibody fragments (e.g., antigen binding fragments) or functional equivalents of the present disclosure are conjugated to a diagnostic or detectable agent. Such immunoconjugates can be useful for monitoring or prognosing the onset, development, progression and/or severity of a disease or disorder as part of a clinical testing procedure, such as determining the efficacy of a particular therapy. Such diagnosis and detection can be accomplished by coupling the antibody to detectable substances including, but not limited to, various enzymes, such as, but not limited to, horseradish peroxidase, alkaline phosphatase, beta-galactosidase, or acetylcholinesterase; prosthetic groups, such as, but not limited to, streptavidin/biotin and avidin/biotin; fluorescent materials, such as, but not limited to, Alexa Fluor 350, Alexa Fluor 405, Alexa Fluor 430, Alexa Fluor 488, Alexa Fluor 500, Alexa Fluor 514, Alexa Fluor 532, Alexa Fluor 546, Alexa Fluor 555, Alexa Fluor 568, Alexa Fluor 594, Alexa Fluor 610, Alexa Fluor 633, Alexa Fluor 647, Alexa Fluor 660, Alexa Fluor 680, Alexa Fluor 700, Alexa Fluor 750, umbelliferone, fluorescein, fluorescein isothiocyanate, rhodamine, dichlorotriazinylamine fluorescein, dansyl chloride or phycoerythrin; luminescent materials, such as, but not limited to, luminol; bioluminescent materials, such as but not limited to, luciferase, luciferin, and aequorin; radioactive materials, such as, but not limited to, iodine (¹³¹I, ¹²⁵I, ¹²³I, and ¹²¹I), carbon (¹⁴C), sulfur (³⁵S), tritium (³H), indium (¹¹⁵In, ¹¹³In, ¹¹²In, and ¹¹¹In) technetium (⁹⁹Tc), thallium (²⁰¹Ti), gallium (⁶⁸Ga, ⁶⁷Ga), palladium (¹⁰³Pd), molybdenum (⁹⁹Mo), xenon (¹³³Xe), fluorine (¹⁸F), ¹⁵³Sm, ¹⁷⁷Lu, ¹⁵⁹Gd, ¹⁴⁹Pm, ¹⁴⁰La, ¹⁷⁵Yb, ¹⁶⁶Ho, ⁹⁰Y, ⁴⁷Sc, ¹⁸⁶Re, ¹⁸⁸Re, ¹⁴²Pr, ¹⁰⁵Rh ⁹⁷Ru, ⁶⁸Ge, ⁵⁷Co, ⁶⁵Z, ⁸⁵Sr, ³²P, ¹⁵³Gd, ¹⁶⁹Yb, ⁵¹Cr, ⁵⁴Mn, ⁷⁵Se, ⁶⁴Cu, ¹¹³Sn, and ¹¹⁷Sn; and positron emitting metals using various positron emission tomographies, and non-radioactive paramagnetic metal ions.

The antibodies, antibody fragments (e.g., antigen binding fragments) or functional equivalents of the present disclosure may also be attached to solid supports, which are particularly useful for immunoassays or purification of the target antigen. Such solid supports include, but are not limited to, glass, cellulose, polyacrylamide, nylon, polystyrene, polyvinyl chloride or polypropylene.

2. Linker

As used herein, a “linker” is any chemical moiety that is capable of linking an antibody, antibody fragment (e.g., antigen binding fragments) or functional equivalent to another moiety, such as a drug moiety. Linkers can be susceptible to cleavage (cleavable linker), such as, acid-induced cleavage, photo-induced cleavage, peptidase-induced cleavage, esterase-induced cleavage, and disulfide bond cleavage, at conditions under which the compound or the antibody remains active. Alternatively, linkers can be substantially resistant to cleavage (e.g., stable linker or noncleavable linker). In some aspects, the linker is a procharged linker, a hydrophilic linker, or a dicarboxylic acid based linker.

A linking group may be divalent, meaning it can link only one drug group (D) to Ab, or it can be trivalent (able to link two drug groups (D) to Ab), or it can be polyvalent. Trivalent, tetravalent, and polyvalent linking group can be used to increase the loading of drug on an antibody, increasing the drug to antibody ratio (DAR) without requiring additional sites on the antibody for attaching linking groups. Such linking groups are known in the art, see e.g., Bioconjugate Chem., 1999 March-April; 10(2):279-88; U.S. Pat. No. 6,638,499; Clin Cancer Res Oct. 15, 2004 10; 7063; WO2012/113847A1.

Suitable linkers for use in ADCs are well known in the art, and can be used in the conjugates described herein (Lash et al., Start-Up 1-6, 2011). The linker can be attached to the antibody at any suitable available position on the antibody. Typically, the linker is attached to an available amino nitrogen atom (i.e., a primary or secondary amine, rather than an amide) or a hydroxylic oxygen atom, or to an available sulfhydryl, such as on a cysteine.

Non-cleavable linkers are any chemical moiety capable of linking a drug, such as an Eg5 inhibitor to an antibody in a stable, covalent manner and does not fall off under the categories listed above for cleaveable linkers. Thus, non-cleavable linkers are substantially resistant to acid-induced cleavage, photo-induced cleavage, peptidase-induced cleavage, esterase-induced cleavage and disulfide bond cleavage. Furthermore, non-cleavable refers to the ability of the chemical bond in the linker or adjoining to the linker to withstand cleavage induced by an acid, photolabile-cleaving agent, a peptidase, an esterase, or a chemical or physiological compound that cleaves a disulfide bond, at conditions under which the drug, such as an Eg5 inhibitor or the antibody does not lose its activity.

Acid-labile linkers are linkers cleavable at acidic pH. For example, certain intracellular compartments, such as endosomes and lysosomes, have an acidic pH (pH 4-5), and provide conditions suitable to cleave acid-labile linkers.

Photo-labile linkers are linkers that are useful at the body surface and in many body cavities that are accessible to light. Furthermore, infrared light can penetrate tissue.

Some linkers can be cleaved by peptidases, i.e. peptidase cleavable linkers. Only certain peptides are readily cleaved inside or outside cells, see e.g., Trout et al., 79 Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, 626-629 (1982) and Umemoto et al. 43 Int. J. Cancer, 677-684 (1989). Furthermore, peptides are composed of α-amino acids and peptidic bonds, which chemically are amide bonds between the carboxylate of one amino acid and the amino group of a second amino acid. Other amide bonds, such as the bond between a carboxylate and the ε-amino group of lysine, are understood not to be peptidic bonds and are considered non-cleavable.

Some linkers can be cleaved by esterases, i.e. esterase cleavable linkers. Again, only certain esters can be cleaved by esterases present inside or outside of cells. Esters are formed by the condensation of a carboxylic acid and an alcohol. Simple esters are esters produced with simple alcohols, such as aliphatic alcohols, and small cyclic and small aromatic alcohols.

Cleavable linking groups such as those containing a hydrazone, a disulfide, the dipeptide Val-Cit, and ones containing a glucuronidase-cleavable p-aminobenzyloxycarbonyl moiety, are well known in the art, and can be used, see, e.g., Ducry, et al., Bioconjugate Chem., vol. 21, 5-13 (2010). For these immunoconjugates, the linking group is substantially stable in vivo until the immunoconjugate binds to or enters a cell, at which point either intracellular enzymes or intracellular chemical conditions (pH, reduction capacity) cleave the linking group to free the Eg5 inhibitor.

There are improved linking groups that connect an antibody with a payload such as a cytotoxin, including the Eg5 inhibitors described herein. These immunoconjugates comprise a linking group that comprises a group of the formula —C(O)NR²¹— or —NR²¹—C(O)—, which may be an amide or a carbamate, wherein R²¹ is of the formula —(CH₂)₁₋₄—R²², R²² is a polar group selected from —OH, —NH₂, N(R²³)₂, COOR²³, CON(R²³)₂, —(OCH₂CH₂O)_(k)—OCH₂CH₂OR²³, and —SO₂R²³, where k is 0 to 4 and each R²³ is independently H or C₁₋₄ alkyl. These linking groups are improved as they reduce aggregation of the immunoconjugate.

Other linkers include for example, in addition to a bond, alkylene groups —(CH₂)n- (where n is typically 1-10 or 1-6), ethylene glycol units (—CH₂CH₂O—)n (where n is typically 1-10 or 1-6), —O—, —S—, carbonyl (—C(═O)—), amides —C(═O)—NH— or —NH—C(═O)—, esters —C(═O)—O— or —O—C(═O)—, rings having two available points of attachment such as divalent phenyl, C₅₋₆ heteroaryl, C₃₋₈ cycloalkyl or C₄₋₈ heterocyclyl groups, amino acids —NH—CHR*—C═O— or —C(═O)—CHR*—NH—, or groups derived from amino acids that attach to N (e.g., to a maleimide nitrogen) having the formula [N]—CHR*—C(═O)—, where R* is the side chain of a known amino acid (frequently one of the canonical amino acids, but also including e.g. norvaline, norleucine, homoserine, homocysteine, phenylglycine, citrulline, and other named alpha-amino acids), polypeptides of known amino acids (e.g., dipeptides, tripeptides, tetrapeptides, etc.), thiol-maleimide linkages (from addition of —SH to maleimide), —S—CR₂— and other thiol ethers such as —S—CR₂—C(═O)— or —C(═O)—CR₂—S—, where R is independently at each occurrence H or C₁₋₄ alkyl, —CH₂—C(═O)—, and disulfides (—S—S—), as well as combinations of any of these with other linker components described below, e.g., a bond, a non-enzymatically cleavable linker, a non-cleavable linker, an enzymatically cleavable linker, a photo-stable linker, a photo-cleavable linker or a self-immolative spacer.

1-(2-((2-Hydroxyethyl)amino)ethyl)-1H-pyrrole-2,5-dione (Linker)

Tert-Butyl 3-((2-(2,5-dioxo-2,5-dihydro-1H-pyrrol-1-yl)ethyl)amino)propanoate (Linker)

tert-Butyl 3-((2-(2,5-dioxo-2,5-dihydro-1H-pyrrol-1-yl)ethyl)amino)propanoate (Linker)

3-((2,5-dioxo-2,5-dihydro-1H-pyrrol-1-yl)methyl)azetidin-1-ium 2,2,2-trifluoroacetate (Linker)

3-((2-(2,5-dioxo-2,5-dihydro-1H-pyrrol-1-yl)ethyl)amino)-3-oxopropan-1-aminium 2,2,2-trifluoroacetate (Linker)

2-(2,5-dioxo-2,5-dihydro-1H-pyrrol-1-yl)ethyl (4-nitrophenyl) carbonate (Linker)

1-(2-(2-hydroxyethoxy)ethyl)-1H-pyrrole-2,5-dione (Linker)

2-(2-(2,5-dioxo-2,5-dihydro-1H-pyrrol-1-yl)ethoxy)ethyl (4-nitrophenyl) carbonate (Linker)

3. Conjugation and Preparation of ADCs Cleavable Linkers: MC-ValCit-PABC ADCs:

To a solution of the payload (0.05 mmol, 1 eq) in DMSO (0.1 M) were added iPr₂EtN (6 eq) and 4-((S)-2-((S)-2-(6-(2,5-dioxo-2,5-dihydro-1H-pyrrol-1-yl)hexanamido)-3-methylbutanamido)-5-ureidopentanamido)benzyl (4-nitrophenyl) carbonate (0.09 mmol, 1.6 eq). The reaction mixture was stirred at room temperature. Upon completion of the reaction by LC/MS (uplc, Method A, see Example 22), the crude was filtered to remove solids and directly purified by reverse phase column chromatography (using PrepLC Method C or D (see Example 22)) to yield the desire MC-ValCit-PABC-payload as the TFA salt.

Stable Linkers:

a) Carbamate Attachment

To a solution of the Boc-payload (0.09 mmol, 1 eq) in DMF (0.1 M) was added iPr₂EtN (0.9 mmol, 10 eq) followed by bis(4-nitrophenyl) carbonate (0.14 mmol, 1.6 eq) and stirred at room temperature for 1 h. Upon completion of the reaction by LC/MS (uplc, Method A, see Example 22), was added the linker (3 eq), and the reaction mixture stirred at room temperature. Upon completion of the reaction by LC/MS (uplc, Method A, see Example 22), solvent was evaporated under reduce pressure and the desire product (Boc-L-P) was obtained after purification by normal phase column chromatography (PrepLC Method B, see Example 22).

b) Amide Attachment

To a solution of the carboxilic acid linker (0.23 mmol, 1.8 eq), HATU (0.27 mmol, 2.1 eq) in DMF (0.3 M), was added iPr2EtN (1.4 mmol, 11 eq), followed by addition of the Boc-payload (0.13 mmol, 1 eq). The reaction mixture was stirred at room temperature. Upon completion of the reaction by LC/MS (uplc, Method A, see Example 22), the reaction mixture was diluted in EtOAc, and partitioned between EtOAc and H₂O. The organic layer was separated and washed with H₂O (twice), dried over Na₂SO₄, filtered and solvent evaporated under reduce pressure. The desired product was obtained after purification by normal phase column chromatography (PrepLC Method B, see Example 22).

c) Click Chemistry

To a solution of azide-Boc-payload (0.05 mmol, 1 eq) and 1-(prop-2-yn-1-yl)-1H-pyrrole-2,5-dione (0.078 mmol, 1.5 eq) in THF (0.1M), a solution of CuSO₄·5H₂O and sodium ascorbate in H₂O (1M) was added. The reaction mixture was stirred at room temperature. Upon completion of the reaction by LC/MS (uplc, Method A, see Example 22), the reaction mixture was diluted in EtOAc and partitioned between EtOAc and H₂O. The organic layer was separated, washed with H₂O, dried over Na₂SO₄, filtered, and solvent evaporated under reduce pressure. The desired product was isolated by normal phase column chromatography (PrepLC Method B, see Example 22).

d) Sulfo GMBS Coupling

Over a solution of the Boc-payload (0.05 mmol, 1 eq) in CH₂Cl₂ (0.1 M) were added iPr₂EtNH (0.30 mmol, 6 eq) and 1-(2,5-dioxo-2,5-dihydro-1H-pyrrol-1-yl)-4-oxo-4-(perfluorophenoxy)butane-2-sulfonic acid (0.15 mmol, 3 eq). The reaction was stirred at room temperature. Upon completion of the reaction by LC/MS (uplc, Method A, see Example 22), the solvent was evaporated under reduce pressure. The desired product was isolated as a mixture of diasteroisomers by normal phase column chromatography (PrepLC Method B, see Example 22).

General Protocol for Linker Attachment

To a solution of the Boc-payload (1 equiv.) in dry DMF (0.1 M) was added iPr₂EtN (10 equiv.) followed by bis(4-nitrophenyl) carbonate (2.2 equiv.) and the reaction was stirred at room temperature for 30 minutes. Upon completion by LC/MS (uplc), the linker (4 eq) was added and the reaction stirred at room temperature for 1 h. The reaction was quenched with water and extracted with ethyl acetate. The organic extracts were combined, dried over Na₂SO₄, filtered and concentrated to dryness. Purification of the crude product by chromatography on silica eluting with 0-100% ethylacetate in heptane afforded the title compound.

Cysteine Metabolites:

General Protocol for the Synthesis of Cysteine-Metabolites:

To a solution of Boc-Linker-Payload (0.1 mmol, 1 eq)) in Acetonitrile (1 mL) were added L-cysteine (1 mmol, 10 eq) and water (0.1 mL). The reaction mixture was stirred for 1 h at room temperature. Upon completion of the reaction by LC/MS (uplc, Method A, see Example 22), the crude (Boc-Cys-Metabolite) was used as is in the next step.

To the solution of the previous step, TFA (150 mmol) was added and the reaction mixture stirred at room temperature. Upon completion of the reaction by LC/MS (uplc, Method A, see Example 22), the crude was purified by reverse phase column chromatography (PrepLC Method C or D, see Example 22), gradient MeCN (+0.1% TFA) in H₂O (+0.1% TFA). The product was isolated as the TFA salt.

General Protocol 2 for Catabolite Synthesis

To a solution of (L)-Cysteine (10 equiv.) in water (0.1 M) was added the Boc-protected linker-payload (1.0 equiv.) in DMF (0.1 M) and the reaction was stirred at room temperature for 1 h. The reaction was with ethyl acetate. The organic extracts were combined, dried over Na₂SO₄, filtered and concentrated to dryness. The residue was dissolved in DCM (0.1 M) and trifluoroacetic acid (50 equiv.) was added. The reaction was stirred at room temperature for 2 h before it was concentrated to dryness. Purification of the crude product by chromatography on silica eluting with 0-100% methanol in DCM afforded the title compound.

Methods of attaching such payloads to a linking group for constructing conjugates are known in the art. Commonly, a free primary or secondary amine or a hydroxyl group is conjugated by an acylation reaction, using a linker component that comprises an activated ester, such as an N-hydroxysuccinimide ester or sulfonate-substituted N-hydroxysuccinimide ester to form an ester or amide linkage. Alternatively, a primary amine can be conjugated by formation of a Schiff base with a carbonyl (typically —CH(═O) or —C(═O)Me) of a linker component. Where the Eg5 inhibitor comprises a thiol group, the conjugate can be formed with a linker component comprising a maleimide or an alpha-halo acetamide (—NH—C(═O)—CH₂LG where LG is Br, Cl or I), or it can be conjugated to a thiol-containing linker component or antigen binding moiety by forming a disulfide linkage.

Immunoconjugates include immunoconjugates comprising any of the payload/linker combinations in Table 1 conjugated with an antibody (AntiB), where the conjugate has the structure shown in the Table, wherein AntiB-S— represents an antibody bonded to the maleimide ring via a sulfur atom (S in the structure) of a cysteine residue of the cKIT antibody.

The cysteine residue connecting the antibody to the maleimide compound may be naturally present in the native antibody, or it may have been introduced into the antibody by protein engineering methods known in the art. Antibodies engineered to contain a cysteine residue introduced by protein engineering are sometimes preferred. In particular, antibodies engineered to introduce cysteine in place of at least one of the following sites are particularly suited for use in the immunoconjugates of the invention: heavy chain sites K360, E152, and S375; and Light chain residue K107. In particular, the combinations HC-K360C with LC-K107C, and HC-E152C with HC-S375C are well suited (EU Numbering).

TABLE 2 SEQ ID NO: 183 (constant region of the wild type heavy chain of cKIT antibodies) SASTKGPSVFPLAPSSKSTSGGTAALGCLVKDYFPEPVTVSWNSGALTSG VHTFPAVLQSSGLYSLSSVVTVPSSSLGTQTYICNVNHKPSNTKVDKKVE PKSCDKTHTCPPCPAPELLGGPSVFLFPPKPKDTLMISRTPEVTCVVVDV SHEDPEVKFNWYVDGVEVHNAKTKPREEQYNSTYRVVSVLTVLHQDWLNG KEYKCKVSNKALPAPIEKTISKAKGQPREPQVYTLPPSREEMTKNQVSLT CLVKGFYPSDIAVEWESNGQPENNYKTTPPVLDSDGSFFLYSKLTVDKSR WQQGNVFSCSVMHEALHNHYTQKSLSLSPGK SEQ ID NO: 184(constant region of wild type light chain of cKIT antibodies) KRTVAAPSVFIFPPSDEQLKSGTASVVCLLNNFYPREAKVQWKVDNALQS GNSQESVTEQDSKDSTYSLSSTLTLSKADYEKHKVYACEVTHQGLSSPVT KSFNRGEC SEQ ID NO: 185 (constant region of the mutant heavy chain of cKIT antibodies with mutation HC- S375C, the mutated Cys residue is bolded/ underlined) SASTKGPSVFPLAPSSKSTSGGTAALGCLVKDYFPEPVTVSWNSGALTSG VHTFPAVLQSSGLYSLSSVVTVPSSSLGTQTYICNVNHKPSNTKVDKKVE PKSCDKTHTCPPCPAPELLGGPSVFLFPPKPKDTLMISRTPEVTCVVVDV SHEDPEVKFNWYVDGVEVHNAKTKPREEQYNSTYRVVSVLTVLHQDWLNG KEYKCKVSNKALPAPIEKTISKAKGQPREPQVYTLPPSREEMTKNQVSLT CLVKGFYP C DIAVEWESNGQPENNYKTTPPVLDSDGSFFLYSKLTVDKSR WQQGNVFSCSVMHEALHNHYTQKSLSLSPGK SEQ ID NO: 186 (constant region of the mutant light chain of cKIT antibodies with mutation LC- K107C, the mutated Cys residue is bolded/ underlined) C RTVAAPSVFIFPPSDEQLKSGTASVVCLLNNFYPREAKVQWKVDNALQS GNSQESVTEQDSKDSTYSLSSTLTLSKADYEKHKVYACEVTHQGLSSPVT KSFNRGEC SEQ ID NO: 187 (constant region of the mutant heavy chain of cKIT antibodies with the double mutation HC-E152C-S375C, the mutated Cys residues are bolded/underlined) SASTKGPSVFPLAPSSKSTSGGTAALGCLVKDYFP C PVTVSWNSGALTSG VHTFPAVLQSSGLYSLSSVVTVPSSSLGTQTYICNVNHKPSNTKVDKKVE PKSCDKTHTCPPCPAPELLGGPSVFLFPPKPKDTLMISRTPEVTCVVVDV SHEDPEVKFNWYVDGVEVHNAKTKPREEQYNSTYRVVSVLTVLHQDWLNG KEYKCKVSNKALPAPIEKTISKAKGQPREPQVYTLPPSREEMTKNQVSLT CLVKGFYP C DIAVEWESNGQPENNYKTTPPVLDSDGSFFLYSKLTVDKSR WQQGNVFSCSVMHEALHNHYTQKSLSLSPGK SEQ ID NO: 188 (constant region of mutant heavy chain cKIT antibodies with mutation at HC-K360C, the mutated Cys residue is bolded/underlined) SASTKGPSVFPLAPSSKSTSGGTAALGCLVKDYFPEPVTVSWNSGALTSG VHTFPAVLQSSGLYSLSSVVTVPSSSLGTQTYICNVNHKPSNTKVDKKVE PKSCDKTHTCPPCPAPELLGGPSVFLFPPKPKDTLMISRTPEVTCVVVDV SHEDPEVKFNWYVDGVEVHNAKTKPREEQYNSTYRVVSVLTVLHQDWLNG KEYKCKVSNKALPAPIEKTISKAKGQPREPQVYTLPPSREEMT C NQVSLT CLVKGFYPSDIAVEWESNGQPENNYKTTPPVLDSDGSFFLYSKLTVDKSR WQQGNVFSCSVMHEALHNHYTQKSLSLSPGK

It is understood that the antibody may contain more than one payload: in typical embodiments, the conjugate contains 2-6, preferably 3-5 payload compounds (Eg5 inhibitors) on an antibody that consists of two heavy chain and two light chain peptides.

Synthesis of ADCs

General Methods for Conjugation of Linker-Payload (L-P) with Antigen Binding Moiety

Payloads were conjugated to antigen binding moieties (e.g., IgG1 kappa or lambda of an antibody) at partially reduced hinge and inter-chains disulfides in a 2-step process. The antibody at a concentration of 5-10 mg/ml in PBS containing 2 mM EDTA, was first partially reduced for 1 to 1.5 hour at 37° C. with 50 mM mercaptoethylamine (added as a solid). After desalting and addition of 1% w/v PS-20 detergent, the partially reduced antibody (1-2 mg/ml) was reacted overnight at 4° C. with an amount of 0.5-1 mg of the Linker-Payload compound, dissolved at 10 mg/ml in DMSO or other suitable solvents, per 10 mg antibody. The antibody-drug conjugate is purified by Protein A chromatography. After base-line washing with PBS, the conjugate is eluted with 50 mM citrate, pH 2.7, 140 mM NaCl, neutralized and sterile filtered. The ADCs described in Table 1 were prepared according to this procedure. This procedure yields an average drug loading of 4-6 molecules of payload per antibody.

A different process was used for antibodies where new cysteine residues were introduced by protein engineering as conjugation sites. In order to reduce all native disulfide bonds and the disulfide bound between the cysteine or GSH adducts of the engineered cysteine residue, freshly prepared DTT was added to previously purified Cys mutants of the antibody, to a final concentration of 20 mM. After incubation with DTT at 37° C. for 1 hour, the mixtures were dialyzed at 4° C. against PBS for three days with daily buffer exchange to remove DTT and re-oxidize the native disulfide bonds. An alternative method is to remove the reducing reagents through a desalting column, Sephadex G-25. Once the protein is fully reduced, 1 mM oxidized ascorbate (dehydro-ascorbic acid) is added to the desalted samples and the re-oxidation incubations are carried out for 20 hours. Reoxidation restores intra-chain disulfides, while dialysis allows cysteines and glutathiones connected to the newly-introduced cysteine(s) to dialyze away. Both of these methods produce similar results, but attempts to follow the re-oxidation protocols previously described in the literature using CuSO₄ resulted in protein precipitation. All examples herein use the dialysis protocol described above.

For example, reoxidized antibodies were conjugated with 5B (Table 1) by incubating 5 mg/ml antibody with 0.35 mM of the maleimide compound for 1 hour in 50 mM sodium phosphate buffer (pH 7.2). The completeness of the reaction was monitored by RP-HPLC and a DAR of 3-4 was typically obtained. The DAR for a sample made by this process was 3.2. Cysteine engineered antibodies gave slightly higher DAR under the same condition, with DAR=3.9-4.0 for the cKIT-5B conjugates. DAR measurements were further verified by MS.

4. Characterization and Selection of Desirable Antibodies and Antibody Drug Conjugates

The immunoconjugates prepared as described above were characterized by LC/MS. Conjugation typically provides a mixture of conjugates that differ in the number of copies of the Linker-Payload moiety bound to the antibody. Mass spectral analysis demonstrates that Linker-Payload groups are attached to light chains and/or heavy chains in each of the conjugates in Table 1. The conjugates were characterized in terms of average drug loading for a sample (DAR, drug to antibody ratio) and aggregation (expressed in %).

The DAR value is extrapolated from LC-MS data for reduced and deglycosylated samples. LC/MS allows quantitation of the average number of molecules of payload (drug) attached to an antibody in an ADC. HPLC separates the antibody into light and heavy chains, and separates the heavy chain (HC) and light chain (LC) according to the number of Linker-Payload groups per chain Mass spectral data enables identification of the component species in the mixture, e.g., LC, LC+1, LC+2, HC, HC+1, HC+2, etc. From the average loading on the LC and HC chains, the average drug to antibody ratio (DAR) can be calculated for an ADC. The DAR for a given conjugate sample represents the average number of drug (payload) molecules attached to a tetrameric antibody containing two light chains and two heavy chains.

Some conjugates were found to form aggregates, and conjugates described herein were also characterized by the extent of aggregation. Aggregation was measured by analytical size exclusion chromatography (Superdex® 200 5/150 GL run in PBS). It was observed that the extent of aggregation depends on the Linker-Payload and the DAR. Conjugates having a lower percent aggregation may be more useful for some purposes, thus immunoconjugates that exhibit less than 50% aggregation, and preferably less than 20% aggregation, may be preferred. Thus, the extent of aggregation for a given payload can be manipulated by selection of linking group and DAR.

The antibodies, antibody fragments (e.g., antigen binding fragments) or antibody drug conjugates of the present disclosure can be characterized and selected for their physical/chemical properties and/or biological activities by various assays known in the art.

For example, an antibody of the present disclosure can be tested for its antigen binding activity by known methods such as ELISA, FACS, Biacore or Western blot.

Transgenic animals and cell lines are particularly useful in screening antibody drug conjugates (ADCs) that have potential as prophylactic or therapeutic treatments of cancer overexpression of tumor-associated antigens and cell surface receptors. Screening for a useful ADC may involve administering a candidate ADC over a range of doses to the transgenic animal, and assaying at various time points for the effect(s) of the ADC on the disease or disorder being evaluated. Alternatively, or additionally, the drug can be administered prior to or simultaneously with exposure to an inducer of the disease, if applicable. The candidate ADC may be screened serially and individually, or in parallel under medium or high-throughput screening format.

One aspect is a screening method comprising (a) transplanting cells from a stable cancer cell line or human patient tumor expressing cKIT (e.g., a GIST cell line or tumor fragment, a melanoma cell line or tumor fragment, AML primary cells) into a non-human animal, (b) administering an ADC drug candidate to the non-human animal and (c) determining the ability of the candidate to inhibit the growth of tumors from the transplanted cell line. The present disclosure also encompasses a method of screening ADC candidates for the treatment of a disease or disorder characterized by the overexpression of cKIT comprising (a) contacting cells from a stable cancer cell line expressing cKIT with a drug candidate, and (b) evaluating the ability of the ADC candidate to inhibit the growth of the stable cell line.

Another aspect is a screening method comprising (a) contacting cells from a stable cancer cell line expressing cKIT with an ADC drug candidate and (b) evaluating the ability of the ADC candidate to block ligand activation of cKIT. In another aspect the ability of the ADC candidate to block ligand-stimulated tyrosine phosphorylation is evaluated.

A further aspect is a screening method comprising (a) contacting cells from a stable cancer cell line expressing cKIT with an ADC drug candidate and (b) evaluating the ability of the ADC candidate to induce cell death. In one aspect the ability of the ADC candidate to induce apoptosis is evaluated.

Candidate ADC can be screened by being administered to the transgenic animal over a range of doses, and evaluating the animal's physiological response to the compounds over time. In some cases, it can be appropriate to administer the compound in conjunction with co-factors that would enhance the efficacy of the compound. If cell lines derived from the subject transgenic animals are used to screen for ADCs useful in treating various disorders associated with overexpression of cKIT, the test ADCs are added to the cell culture medium at an appropriate time, and the cellular response to the ADCs is evaluated over time using the appropriate biochemical and/or histological assays.

Thus, the present disclosure provides assays for identifying ADC which specifically target and bind to cKIT, and cKIT overexpression on tumor cells.

cKIT Antibodies

The present disclosure provides for antibodies or antibody fragments (e.g., antigen binding fragments) that specifically bind to human cKIT. Antibodies or antibody fragments (e.g., antigen binding fragments) of the present disclosure include, but are not limited to, the human monoclonal antibodies or fragments thereof, isolated as described, in the Examples below.

The present disclosure in certain aspects provides antibodies or antibody fragments (e.g., antigen binding fragments) that specifically bind cKIT, said antibodies or antibody fragments (e.g., antigen binding fragments) comprise a VH domain having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 9, 28, 46, 64, 82, 100, 118, 136 or 154 (Table 3). The present disclosure also provides antibodies or antibody fragments (e.g., antigen binding fragments) that specifically bind to cKIT, said antibodies or antibody fragments (e.g., antigen binding fragments) comprise a VH CDR having an amino acid sequence of any one of the VH CDRs listed in Table 3. In particular aspects, the present disclosure provides antibodies or antibody fragments (e.g., antigen binding fragments) that specifically bind to cKIT, said antibodies comprising (or alternatively, consist of) one, two, three, four, five or more VH CDRs having an amino acid sequence of any of the VH CDRs listed in Table 3, infra.

The present disclosure provides antibodies or antibody fragments (e.g., antigen binding fragments) that specifically bind to cKIT, said antibodies or antibody fragments (e.g., antigen binding fragments) comprise a VL domain having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 18, 37, 55, 73, 91, 109, 127, 145 or 163 (Table 3). The present disclosure also provides antibodies or antibody fragments (e.g., antigen binding fragments) that specifically bind to cKIT, said antibodies or antibody fragments (e.g., antigen binding fragments) comprise a VL CDR having an amino acid sequence of any one of the VL CDRs listed in Table 3, infra. In particular, the disclosure provides antibodies or antibody fragments (e.g., antigen binding fragments) that specifically bind to cKIT, said antibodies or antibody fragments (e.g., antigen binding fragments) comprise (or alternatively, consist of) one, two, three or more VL CDRs having an amino acid sequence of any of the VL CDRs listed in Table 3.

Other antibodies or antibody fragments (e.g., antigen binding fragments) of the present disclosure include amino acids that have been mutated, yet have at least 60, 70, 80, 90 or 95 percent identity in the CDR regions with the CDR regions depicted in the sequences described in Table 3. In some aspects, it includes mutant amino acid sequences wherein no more than 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5 amino acids have been mutated in the CDR regions when compared with the CDR regions depicted in the sequence described in Table 3.

The present disclosure also provides nucleic acid sequences that encode VH, VL, the full length heavy chain, and the full length light chain of the antibodies that specifically bind to cKIT. Such nucleic acid sequences can be optimized for expression in mammalian cells.

TABLE 3 Examples of anti- cKIT Antibodies 9P3 SEQ ID NO 3: (Kabat) HCDR1 DYYMA SEQ ID NO 4: (Kabat) HCDR2 NINYDGSSTYYLDSLKS SEQ ID NO 5: (Kabat) HCDR3 GDYYGTTYWYFDV SEQ ID NO 6: (Chothia) HCDR1 GFTFSDY SEQ ID NO 7: (Chothia) HCDR2 NYDGSS SEQ ID NO 8: (Chothia) HCDR3 GDYYGTTYWYFDV SEQ ID NO 9: VH EVRLVESEGGLVQPRSSMKLSCTASGFTFSDYYMAWVRQVPE KGLEWVANINYDGSSTYYLDSLKSRFIISRDNAKNILYLQMSSL KSEDTATYYCARGDYYGTTYWYFDVVVGTGTTVTVSS SEQ ID NO 10 Constant VAAPSVFIFPPSDEQLKSGTASVVCLLNNFYPREAKVQWKVDN heavy ALQSGNSQESVTEQDSKDSTYSLSSTLTLSKADYEKHKVYACE chain VTHQGLSSPVTKSFNRGEC SEQ ID NO 11: Heavy EVQLVESGGGLVQPGGSLRLSCAASGFTFSDYYMAWVRQAPG Chain KGLEWVANINYDGSSTYYLDSVKGRFTISRDNAKNSLYLQMN (humanized) SLRAEDTAVYYCARGDYYGTTYWYFDVWGQGTTVTVSSAST KGPSVFPLAPSSKSTSGGTAALGCLVKDYFPEPVTVSWNSGAL TSGVHTFPAVLQSSGLYSLSSVVTVPSSSLGTQTYICNVNHKPS NTKVDKRVEPKSCDKTHTCPPCPAPELLGGPSVFLFPPKPKDTL MISRTPEVTCVVVDVSHEDPEVKFNWYVDGVEVHNAKTKPRE EQYNSTYRVVSVLTVLHQDWLNGKEYKCKVSNKALPAPIEKTI SKAKGQPREPQVYTLPPSREEMTKNQVSLTCLVKGFYPSDIAV EWESNGQPENNYKTTPPVLDSDGSFFLYSKLTVDKSRWQQGN VFSCSVMHEALHNHYTQKSLSLSPGK SEQ ID NO 12: (Kabat) LCDR1 RASQDISNYLN SEQ ID NO 13: (Kabat) LCDR2 YTSRLQS SEQ ID NO 14: (Kabat) LCDR3 QQGKKLWS SEQ ID NO 15: LCDR1 SQDISNY (Chothia) SEQ ID NO 16: LCDR2 YTS (Chothia) SEQ ID NO 17: LCDR3 GKKLW (Chothia) SEQ ID NO 18: VL DIQMTQTTSSLSASLGDRVTISCRASQDISNYLNWYQQKPDGT VKLLIYYTSRLQSGVPSRFSGSGSGTDYSLTISNLEQEDIATYFC QQGKKLWSFGGGTKLEIKR SEQ ID NO: 19 Constant ASTKGPSVFPLAPSSKSTSGGTAALGCLVKDYFPEPVTVSWNS light chain GALTSGVHTFPAVLQSSGLYSLSSVVTVPSSSLGTQTYICNVNH KPSNTKVDKRVEPKSCDKTHTCPPCPAPELLGGPSVFLFPPKPK DTLMISRTPEVTCVVVDVSHEDPEVKFNWYVDGVEVHNAKTK PREEQYNSTYRVVSVLTVLHQDWLNGKEYKCKVSNKALPAPI EKTISKAKGQPREPQVYTLPPSREEMTKNQVSLTCLVKGFYPSD IAVEWESNGQPENNYKTTPPVLDSDGSFFLYSKLTVDKSRWQQ GNVFSCSVMHEALHNHYTQKSLSLSPGK SEQ ID NO 20: Light DIQMTQSPSSLSASVGDRVTITCRASQSISSYLNWYQQKPGKAP Chain KLLIYYTSRLQSGVPSRFSGSGSGTDYTLTISSLQPEDFATYYCQ (humanized QGKKLWSFGGGTKVEIKRTVAAPSVFIFPPSDEQLKSGTASVVC VK1) LLNNFYPREAKVQWKVDNALQSGNSQESVTEQDSKDSTYSLS STLTLSKADYEKHKVYACEVTHQGLSSPVTKSFNRGEC SEQ ID NO 21: DNA Light EIVMTQSPATLSLSPGERATLSCRASQDISNYLNWYQQKPGQA Chain PRLLIYYTSRLQSGIPARFSGSGSGTDYTLTISSLEPEDFAVYYC (humanized QQGKKLWSFGGGTKVEIKRTVAAPSVFIFPPSDEQLKSGTASV VK3 VCLLNNFYPREAKVQWKVDNALQSGNSQESVTEQDSKDSTYS NEG009) LSSTLTLSKADYEKHKVYACEVTHQGLSSPVTKSFNRGEC NEG024 SEQ ID NO 22: (Kabat) HCDR1 DYYMA SEQ ID NO 23: (Kabat) HCDR2 NINQIAGSTYYLDSVRG SEQ ID NO 24: (Kabat) HCDR3 GDYYGTTYWYFDV SEQ ID NO 25: HCDR1 GFTFSDY (Chothia) SEQ ID NO 26: HCDR2 NQIAGS (Chothia) SEQ ID NO 27: HCDR3 GDYYGTTYWYFDV (Chothia) SEQ ID NO 28: VH EVQLVESGGGLVQPGGSLRLSCAASGFTFSDYYMAWVRQAPG KGLEWVANINQIAGSTYYLDSVRGRFTISRDNAKNSLYLQMNS LRAEDTAVYYCARGDYYGTTYWYFDVWGQGTTVTVSS SEQ ID NO 29: Heavy EVQLVESGGGLVQPGGSLRLSCAASGFTFSDYYMAWVRQAPG Chain KGLEWVANINQIAGSTYYLDSVRGRFTISRDNAKNSLYLQMNS LRAEDTAVYYCARGDYYGTTYWYFDVWGQGTTVTVSSASTK GPSVFPLAPSSKSTSGGTAALGCLVKDYFPEPVTVSWNSGALTS GVHTFPAVLQSSGLYSLSSVVTVPSSSLGTQTYICNVNHKPSNT KVDKRVEPKSCDKTHTCPPCPAPELLGGPSVFLFPPKPKDTLMI SRTPEVTCVVVDVSHEDPEVKFNWYVDGVEVHNAKTKPREEQ YNSTYRVVSVLTVLHQDWLNGKEYKCKVSNKALPAPIEKTISK AKGQPREPQVYTLPPSREEMTKNQVSLTCLVKGFYPSDIAVEW ESNGQPENNYKTTPPVLDSDGSFFLYSKLTVDKSRWQQGNVFS CSVMHEALHNHYTQKSLSLSPGK SEQ ID NO 30: DNA GAAGTGCAATTGGTGGAAAGCGGCGGAGGCCTGGTGCAGCC Heavy TGGCGGCTCTCTGAGACTGAGCTGTGCCGCCAGCGGCTTCA Chain CCTTCAGCGACTACTACATGGCCTGGGTCCGACAGGCCCCT GGCAAGGGCCTGGAATGGGTGGCCAATATCAACCAAATCGC CGGCAGCACCTACTACCTGGACAGCGTGAGAGGCCGGTTCA CCATCAGCCGGGACAACGCCAAGAACAGCCTGTACCTGCAG ATGAACAGCCTGCGGGCCGAGGACACCGCCGTGTACTACTG CGCCAGAGGCGATTACTACGGCACCACCTACTGGTACTTCG ACGTGTGGGGCCAGGGCACCACCGTGACCGTCAGCTCAGCT AGCACCAAGGGCCCCAGCGTGTTCCCCCTGGCCCCCAGCAG CAAGAGCACCAGCGGCGGCACAGCCGCCCTGGGCTGCCTGG TGAAGGACTACTTCCCCGAGCCCGTGACCGTGTCCTGGAAC AGCGGAGCCCTGACCTCCGGCGTGCACACCTTCCCCGCCGT GCTGCAGAGCAGCGGCCTGTACAGCCTGTCCAGCGTGGTGA CAGTGCCCAGCAGCAGCCTGGGCACCCAGACCTACATCTGC AACGTGAACCACAAGCCCAGCAACACCAAGGTGGACAAGA GAGTGGAGCCCAAGAGCTGCGACAAGACCCACACCTGCCCC CCCTGCCCAGCCCCAGAGCTGCTGGGCGGACCCTCCGTGTTC CTGTTCCCCCCCAAGCCCAAGGACACCCTGATGATCAGCAG GACCCCCGAGGTGACCTGCGTGGTGGTGGACGTGAGCCACG AGGACCCAGAGGTGAAGTTCAACTGGTACGTGGACGGCGTG GAGGTGCACAACGCCAAGACCAAGCCCAGAGAGGAGCAGT ACAACAGCACCTACAGGGTGGTGTCCGTGCTGACCGTGCTG CACCAGGACTGGCTGAACGGCAAGGAATACAAGTGCAAGG TCTCCAACAAGGCCCTGCCAGCCCCCATCGAAAAGACCATC AGCAAGGCCAAGGGCCAGCCACGGGAGCCCCAGGTGTACA CCCTGCCCCCCTCCCGGGAGGAGATGACCAAGAACCAGGTG TCCCTGACCTGTCTGGTGAAGGGCTTCTACCCCAGCGACATC GCCGTGGAGTGGGAGAGCAACGGCCAGCCCGAGAACAACT ACAAGACCACCCCCCCAGTGCTGGACAGCGACGGCAGCTTC TTCCTGTACAGCAAGCTGACCGTGGACAAGTCCAGGTGGCA GCAGGGCAACGTGTTCAGCTGCAGCGTGATGCACGAGGCCC TGCACAACCACTACACCCAGAAGAGCCTGAGCCTGTCCCCC GGCAAG SEQ ID NO 31: (Kabat) LCDR1 RASQDISNYLN SEQ ID NO 32: (Kabat) LCDR2 YTSRLQS SEQ ID NO 33: (Kabat) LCDR3 QQGKKLWS SEQ ID NO 34: LCDR1 SQDISNY (Chothia) SEQ ID NO 35: LCDR2 YTS (Chothia) SEQ ID NO 36: LCDR3 GKKLW (Chothia) SEQ ID NO 37: VL EIVMTQSPATLSLSPGERATLSCRASQDISNYLNWYQQKPGQA PRLLIYYTSRLQSGIPARFSGSGSGTDYTLTISSLEPEDFAVYYC QQGKKLWSFGGGTKVEIK SEQ ID NO 38: Light EIVMTQSPATLSLSPGERATLSCRASQDISNYLNWYQQKPGQA Chain PRLLIYYTSRLQSGIPARFSGSGSGTDYTLTISSLEPEDFAVYYC QQGKKLWSFGGGTKVEIKRTVAAPSVFIFPPSDEQLKSGTASV VCLLNNFYPREAKVQWKVDNALQSGNSQESVTEQDSKDSTYS LSSTLTLSKADYEKHKVYACEVTHQGLSSPVTKSFNRGEC SEQ ID NO 39: DNA Light GAGATCGTGATGACCCAGAGCCCCGCCACCCTGAGCCTGAG Chain CCCTGGCGAAAGAGCCACCCTGTCCTGCAGAGCCAGCCAGG ACATCAGCAACTACCTGAACTGGTATCAGCAGAAGCCCGGC CAGGCCCCCAGACTGCTGATCTACTACACCAGCCGGCTGCA GAGCGGCATCCCCGCCAGATTTTCTGGCAGCGGCAGCGGCA CCGACTACACCCTGACCATCAGCAGCCTGGAACCCGAGGAC TTCGCCGTGTACTACTGCCAGCAGGGCAAGAAGCTGTGGTC CTTCGGCGGAGGCACCAAGGTGGAAATCAAGCGTACGGTGG CCGCTCCCAGCGTGTTCATCTTCCCCCCCAGCGACGAGCAGC TGAAGAGCGGCACCGCCAGCGTGGTGTGCCTGCTGAACAAC TTCTACCCCCGGGAGGCCAAGGTGCAGTGGAAGGTGGACAA CGCCCTGCAGAGCGGCAACAGCCAGGAGAGCGTCACCGAG CAGGACAGCAAGGACTCCACCTACAGCCTGAGCAGCACCCT GACCCTGAGCAAGGCCGACTACGAGAAGCATAAGGTGTACG CCTGCGAGGTGACCCACCAGGGCCTGTCCAGCCCCGTGACC AAGAGCTTCAACAGGGGCGAGTGC NEG026 SEQ ID NO 40: (Kabat) HCDR1 DYYMA SEQ ID NO 41: (Kabat) HCDR2 NINQNTGSTYYVDSVQG SEQ ID NO 42: (Kabat) HCDR3 GDYYGTTYWYFDV SEQ ID NO 43: HCDR1 GFTFSDY (Chothia) SEQ ID NO 44: HCDR2 NQNTGS (Chothia) SEQ ID NO 45: HCDR3 GDYYGTTYWYFDV (Chothia) SEQ ID NO 46: VH EVQLVESGGGLVQPGGSLRLSCAASGFTFSDYYMAWVRQAPG KGLEWVANINQNTGSTYYVDSVQGRFTISRDNAKNSLYLQMN SLRAEDTAVYYCARGDYYGTTYWYFDVVVGQGTTVTVSS SEQ ID NO 47: Heavy EVQLVESGGGLVQPGGSLRLSCAASGFTFSDYYMAWVRQAPG Chain KGLEWVANINQNTGSTYYVDSVQGRFTISRDNAKNSLYLQMN SLRAEDTAVYYCARGDYYGTTYWYFDVWGQGTTVTVSSAST KGPSVFPLAPSSKSTSGGTAALGCLVKDYFPEPVTVSWNSGAL TSGVHTFPAVLQSSGLYSLSSVVTVPSSSLGTQTYICNVNHKPS NTKVDKRVEPKSCDKTHTCPPCPAPELLGGPSVFLFPPKPKDTL MISRTPEVTCVVVDVSHEDPEVKFNWYVDGVEVHNAKTKPRE EQYNSTYRVVSVLTVLHQDWLNGKEYKCKVSNKALPAPIEKTI SKAKGQPREPQVYTLPPSREEMTKNQVSLTCLVKGFYPSDIAV EWESNGQPENNYKTTPPVLDSDGSFFLYSKLTVDKSRWQQGN VFSCSVMHEALHNHYTQKSLSLSPGK SEQ ID NO 48: DNA GAAGTGCAATTGGTGGAAAGCGGCGGAGGCCTGGTGCAGCC Heavy TGGCGGCTCTCTGAGACTGAGCTGTGCCGCCAGCGGCTTCA Chain CCTTCAGCGACTACTACATGGCCTGGGTCCGACAGGCCCCT GGCAAGGGCCTGGAATGGGTGGCCAATATCAACCAAAACAC CGGCAGCACCTACTACGTGGACAGCGTGCAAGGCCGGTTCA CCATCAGCCGGGACAACGCCAAGAACAGCCTGTACCTGCAG ATGAACAGCCTGCGGGCCGAGGACACCGCCGTGTACTACTG CGCCAGAGGCGATTACTACGGCACCACCTACTGGTACTTCG ACGTGTGGGGCCAGGGCACCACCGTGACCGTCAGCTCAGCT AGCACCAAGGGCCCCAGCGTGTTCCCCCTGGCCCCCAGCAG CAAGAGCACCAGCGGCGGCACAGCCGCCCTGGGCTGCCTGG TGAAGGACTACTTCCCCGAGCCCGTGACCGTGTCCTGGAAC AGCGGAGCCCTGACCTCCGGCGTGCACACCTTCCCCGCCGT GCTGCAGAGCAGCGGCCTGTACAGCCTGTCCAGCGTGGTGA CAGTGCCCAGCAGCAGCCTGGGCACCCAGACCTACATCTGC AACGTGAACCACAAGCCCAGCAACACCAAGGTGGACAAGA GAGTGGAGCCCAAGAGCTGCGACAAGACCCACACCTGCCCC CCCTGCCCAGCCCCAGAGCTGCTGGGCGGACCCTCCGTGTTC CTGTTCCCCCCCAAGCCCAAGGACACCCTGATGATCAGCAG GACCCCCGAGGTGACCTGCGTGGTGGTGGACGTGAGCCACG AGGACCCAGAGGTGAAGTTCAACTGGTACGTGGACGGCGTG GAGGTGCACAACGCCAAGACCAAGCCCAGAGAGGAGCAGT ACAACAGCACCTACAGGGTGGTGTCCGTGCTGACCGTGCTG CACCAGGACTGGCTGAACGGCAAGGAATACAAGTGCAAGG TCTCCAACAAGGCCCTGCCAGCCCCCATCGAAAAGACCATC AGCAAGGCCAAGGGCCAGCCACGGGAGCCCCAGGTGTACA CCCTGCCCCCCTCCCGGGAGGAGATGACCAAGAACCAGGTG TCCCTGACCTGTCTGGTGAAGGGCTTCTACCCCAGCGACATC GCCGTGGAGTGGGAGAGCAACGGCCAGCCCGAGAACAACT ACAAGACCACCCCCCCAGTGCTGGACAGCGACGGCAGCTTC TTCCTGTACAGCAAGCTGACCGTGGACAAGTCCAGGTGGCA GCAGGGCAACGTGTTCAGCTGCAGCGTGATGCACGAGGCCC TGCACAACCACTACACCCAGAAGAGCCTGAGCCTGTCCCCC GGCAAG SEQ ID NO 49: (Kabat) LCDR1 RASQDISNYLN SEQ ID NO 50: (Kabat) LCDR2 YTSRLQS SEQ ID NO 51: (Kabat) LCDR3 QQGKKLWS SEQ ID NO 52: LCDR1 SQDISNY (Chothia) SEQ ID NO 53: LCDR2 YTS (Chothia) SEQ ID NO 54: LCDR3 GKKLW (Chothia) SEQ ID NO 55: VL EIVMTQSPATLSLSPGERATLSCRASQDISNYLNWYQQKPGQA PRLLIYYTSRLQSGIPARFSGSGSGTDYTLTISSLEPEDFAVYYC QQGKKLWSFGGGTKVEIK SEQ ID NO 56: Light EIVMTQSPATLSLSPGERATLSCRASQDISNYLNWYQQKPGQA Chain PRLLIYYTSRLQSGIPARFSGSGSGTDYTLTISSLEPEDFAVYYC QQGKKLWSFGGGTKVEIKRTVAAPSVFIFPPSDEQLKSGTASV VCLLNNFYPREAKVQWKVDNALQSGNSQE SVTEQDSKDSTYSLSSTLTLSKADYEKHKVYACEVTHQGLSSP VTKSFNRGEC SEQ ID NO 57: DNA Light GAGATCGTGATGACCCAGAGCCCCGCCACCCTGAGCCTGAG Chain CCCTGGCGAAAGAGCCACCCTGTCCTGCAGAGCCAGCCAGG ACATCAGCAACTACCTGAACTGGTATCAGCAGAAGCCCGGC CAGGCCCCCAGACTGCTGATCTACTACACCAGCCGGCTGCA GAGCGGCATCCCCGCCAGATTTTCTGGCAGCGGCAGCGGCA CCGACTACACCCTGACCATCAGCAGCCTGGAACCCGAGGAC TTCGCCGTGTACTACTGCCAGCAGGGCAAGAAGCTGTGGTC CTTCGGCGGAGGCACCAAGGTGGAAATCAAGCGTACGGTGG CCGCTCCCAGCGTGTTCATCTTCCCCCCCAGCGACGAGCAGC TGAAGAGCGGCACCGCCAGCGTGGTGTGCCTGCTGAACAAC TTCTACCCCCGGGAGGCCAAGGTGCAGTGGAAGGTGGACAA CGCCCTGCAGAGCGGCAACAGCCAGGAGAGCGTCACCGAG CAGGACAGCAAGGACTCCACCTACAGCCTGAGCAGCACCCT GACCCTGAGCAAGGCCGACTACGAGAAGCATAAGGTGTACG CCTGCGAGGTGACCCACCAGGGCCTGTCCAGCCCCGTGACC AAGAGCTTCAACAGGGGCGAGTGC NEG027 SEQ ID NO 58: (Kabat) HCDR1 DYYMA SEQ ID NO 59: (Kabat) HCDR2 SINQNTGSTYYLDSVRG SEQ ID NO 60: (Kabat) HCDR3 GDYYGTTYWYFDV SEQ ID NO 61: HCDR1 GFTFSDY (Chothia) SEQ ID NO 62: HCDR2 NQNTGS (Chothia) SEQ ID NO 63: HCDR3 GDYYGTTYWYFDV (Chothia) SEQ ID NO 64: VH EVQLVESGGGLVQPGGSLRLSCAASGFTFSDYYMAWVRQAPG KGLEWVASINQNTGSTYYLDSVRGRFTISRDNAKNSLYLQMNS LRAEDTAVYYCARGDYYGTTYWYFDVWGQGTTVTVSS SEQ ID NO 65: Heavy EVQLVESGGGLVQPGGSLRLSCAASGFTFSDYYMAWVRQAPG Chain KGLEWVASINQNTGSTYYLDSVRGRFTISRDNAKNSLYLQMNS LRAEDTAVYYCARGDYYGTTYWYFDVWGQGTTVTVSSASTK GPSVFPLAPSSKSTSGGTAALGCLVKDYFPEPVTVSWNSGALTS GVHTFPAVLQSSGLYSLSSVVTVPSSSLGTQTYICNVNHKPSNT KVDKRVEPKSCDKTHTCPPCPAPELLGGPSVFLFPPKPKDTLMI SRTPEVTCVVVDVSHEDPEVKFNWYVDGVEVHNAKTKPREEQ YNSTYRVVSVLTVLHQDWLNGKEYKCKVSNKALPAPIEKTISK AKGQPREPQVYTLPPSREEMTKNQVSLTCLVKGFYPSDIAVEW ESNGQPENNYKTTPPVLDSDGSFFLYSKLTVDKSRWQQGNVFS CSVMHEALHNHYTQKSLSLSPGK SEQ ID NO 66: DNA GAAGTGCAATTGGTGGAAAGCGGCGGAGGCCTGGTGCAGCC Heavy TGGCGGCTCTCTGAGACTGAGCTGTGCCGCCAGCGGCTTCA Chain CCTTCAGCGACTACTACATGGCCTGGGTCCGACAGGCCCCT GGCAAGGGCCTGGAATGGGTGGCCAGTATCAACCAAAACAC CGGCAGCACCTACTACCTGGACAGCGTGCGAGGCCGGTTCA CCATCAGCCGGGACAACGCCAAGAACAGCCTGTACCTGCAG ATGAACAGCCTGCGGGCCGAGGACACCGCCGTGTACTACTG CGCCAGAGGCGATTACTACGGCACCACCTACTGGTACTTCG ACGTGTGGGGCCAGGGCACCACCGTGACCGTCAGCTCAGCT AGCACCAAGGGCCCCAGCGTGTTCCCCCTGGCCCCCAGCAG CAAGAGCACCAGCGGCGGCACAGCCGCCCTGGGCTGCCTGG TGAAGGACTACTTCCCCGAGCCCGTGACCGTGTCCTGGAAC AGCGGAGCCCTGACCTCCGGCGTGCACACCTTCCCCGCCGT GCTGCAGAGCAGCGGCCTGTACAGCCTGTCCAGCGTGGTGA CAGTGCCCAGCAGCAGCCTGGGCACCCAGACCTACATCTGC AACGTGAACCACAAGCCCAGCAACACCAAGGTGGACAAGA GAGTGGAGCCCAAGAGCTGCGACAAGACCCACACCTGCCCC CCCTGCCCAGCCCCAGAGCTGCTGGGCGGACCCTCCGTGTTC CTGTTCCCCCCCAAGCCCAAGGACACCCTGATGATCAGCAG GACCCCCGAGGTGACCTGCGTGGTGGTGGACGTGAGCCACG AGGACCCAGAGGTGAAGTTCAACTGGTACGTGGACGGCGTG GAGGTGCACAACGCCAAGACCAAGCCCAGAGAGGAGCAGT ACAACAGCACCTACAGGGTGGTGTCCGTGCTGACCGTGCTG CACCAGGACTGGCTGAACGGCAAGGAATACAAGTGCAAGG TCTCCAACAAGGCCCTGCCAGCCCCCATCGAAAAGACCATC AGCAAGGCCAAGGGCCAGCCACGGGAGCCCCAGGTGTACA CCCTGCCCCCCTCCCGGGAGGAGATGACCAAGAACCAGGTG TCCCTGACCTGTCTGGTGAAGGGCTTCTACCCCAGCGACATC GCCGTGGAGTGGGAGAGCAACGGCCAGCCCGAGAACAACT ACAAGACCACCCCCCCAGTGCTGGACAGCGACGGCAGCTTC TTCCTGTACAGCAAGCTGACCGTGGACAAGTCCAGGTGGCA GCAGGGCAACGTGTTCAGCTGCAGCGTGATGCACGAGGCCC TGCACAACCACTACACCCAGAAGAGCCTGAGCCTGTCCCCC GGCAAG SEQ ID NO 67: (Kabat) LCDR1 RASQDISNYLN SEQ ID NO 68: (Kabat) LCDR2 YTSRLQS SEQ ID NO 69: (Kabat) LCDR3 QQGKKLWS SEQ ID NO 70: LCDR1 SQDISNY (Chothia) SEQ ID NO 71: LCDR2 YTS (Chothia) SEQ ID NO 72: LCDR3 GKKLW (Chothia) SEQ ID NO 73: VL EIVMTQSPATLSLSPGERATLSCRASQDISNYLNWYQQKPGQA PRLLIYYTSRLQSGIPARFSGSGSGTDYTLTISSLEPEDFAVYYC QQGKKLWSFGGGTKVEIK SEQ ID NO 74: Light EIVMTQSPATLSLSPGERATLSCRASQDISNYLNWYQQKPGQA Chain PRLLIYYTSRLQSGIPARFSGSGSGTDYTLTISSLEP EDFAVYYCQQGKKLWSFGGGTKVEIKRTVAAPSVFIFPPSDEQ LKSGTASVVCLLNNFYPREAKVQWKVDNALQSGNSQESVTEQ DSKDSTYSLSSTLTLSKADYEKHKVYACEVTHQGLSSPVTKSF NRGEC SEQ ID NO 75: DNA Light GAGATCGTGATGACCCAGAGCCCCGCCACCCTGAGCCTGAG Chain CCCTGGCGAAAGAGCCACCCTGTCCTGCAGAGCCAGCCAGG ACATCAGCAACTACCTGAACTGGTATCAGCAGAAGCCCGGC CAGGCCCCCAGACTGCTGATCTACTACACCAGCCGGCTGCA GAGCGGCATCCCCGCCAGATTTTCTGGCAGCGGCAGCGGCA CCGACTACACCCTGACCATCAGCAGCCTGGAACCCGAGGAC TTCGCCGTGTACTACTGCCAGCAGGGCAAGAAGCTGTGGTC CTTCGGCGGAGGCACCAAGGTGGAAATCAAGCGTACGGTGG CCGCTCCCAGCGTGTTCATCTTCCCCCCCAGCGACGAGCAGC TGAAGAGCGGCACCGCCAGCGTGGTGTGCCTGCTGAACAAC TTCTACCCCCGGGAGGCCAAGGTGCAGTGGAAGGTGGACAA CGCCCTGCAGAGCGGCAACAGCCAGGAGAGCGTCACCGAG CAGGACAGCAAGGACTCCACCTACAGCCTGAGCAGCACCCT GACCCTGAGCAAGGCCGACTACGAGAAGCATAAGGTGTACG CCTGCGAGGTGACCCACCAGGGCCTGTCCAGCCCCGTGACC AAGAGCTTCAACAGGGGCGAGTGC NEG085 SEQ ID NO 76: (Kabat) HCDR1 GYYMA SEQ ID NO 77: (Kabat) HCDR2 NINYPGSSTYYLDSVKG SEQ ID NO 78: (Kabat) HCDR3 GDYYGTTYWYFDV SEQ ID NO 79: HCDR1 GFAFSGY (Chothia) SEQ ID NO 80: HCDR2 NYPGSS (Chothia) SEQ ID NO 81: HCDR3 GDYYGTTYWYFDV (Chothia) SEQ ID NO 82: VH EVQLVESGGGLVQPGGSLRLSCAASGFAFSGYYMAWVRQAPG KGLEWVANINYPGSSTYYLDSVKGRFTISRDNAKNSLYLQMNS LRAEDTAVYYCARGDYYGTTYWYFDVVVGQGTTVTVSS SEQ ID NO 83: Heavy EVQLVESGGGLVQPGGSLRLSCAASGFAFSGYYMAWVRQAPG Chain KGLEWVANINYPGSSTYYLDSVKGRFTISRDNAKNSLYLQMNS LRAEDTAVYYCARGDYYGTTYWYFDVWGQGTTVTVSSASTK GPSVFPLAPSSKSTSGGTAALGCLVKDYFPEPVTVSWNSGALTS GVHTFPAVLQSSGLYSLSSVVTVPSSSLGTQTYICNVNHKPSNT KVDKRVEPKSCDKTHTCPPCPAPELLGGPSVFLFPPKPKDTLMI SRTPEVTCVVVDVSHEDPEVKFNWYVDGVEVHNAKTKPREEQ YNSTYRVVSVLTVLHQDWLNGKEYKCKVSNKALPAPIEKTISK AKGQPREPQVYTLPPSREEMTKNQVSLTCLVKGFYPSDIAVEW ESNGQPENNYKTTPPVLDSDGSFFLYSKLTVDKSRWQQGNVFS CSVMHEALHNHYTQKSLSLSPGK SEQ ID NO 84: DNA GAAGTGCAATTGGTGGAAAGCGGCGGAGGCCTGGTGCAGCC Heavy TGGCGGCTCTCTGAGACTGAGCTGTGCCGCCAGCGGCTTCG Chain CCTTCAGCGGCTACTACATGGCCTGGGTCCGACAGGCCCCT GGCAAGGGCCTGGAATGGGTGGCCAACATCAACTACCCCGG CAGCAGCACCTACTACCTGGACAGCGTGAAGGGCCGGTTCA CCATCAGCCGGGACAACGCCAAGAACAGCCTGTACCTGCAG ATGAACAGCCTGCGGGCCGAGGACACCGCCGTGTACTACTG CGCCAGAGGCGATTACTACGGCACCACCTACTGGTACTTCG ACGTGTGGGGCCAGGGCACCACCGTGACCGTCAGCTCAGCT AGCACCAAGGGCCCCAGCGTGTTCCCCCTGGCCCCCAGCAG CAAGAGCACCAGCGGCGGCACAGCCGCCCTGGGCTGCCTGG TGAAGGACTACTTCCCCGAGCCCGTGACCGTGTCCTGGAAC AGCGGAGCCCTGACCTCCGGCGTGCACACCTTCCCCGCCGT GCTGCAGAGCAGCGGCCTGTACAGCCTGTCCAGCGTGGTGA CAGTGCCCAGCAGCAGCCTGGGCACCCAGACCTACATCTGC AACGTGAACCACAAGCCCAGCAACACCAAGGTGGACAAGA GAGTGGAGCCCAAGAGCTGCGACAAGACCCACACCTGCCCC CCCTGCCCAGCCCCAGAGCTGCTGGGCGGACCCTCCGTGTTC CTGTTCCCCCCCAAGCCCAAGGACACCCTGATGATCAGCAG GACCCCCGAGGTGACCTGCGTGGTGGTGGACGTGAGCCACG AGGACCCAGAGGTGAAGTTCAACTGGTACGTGGACGGCGTG GAGGTGCACAACGCCAAGACCAAGCCCAGAGAGGAGCAGT ACAACAGCACCTACAGGGTGGTGTCCGTGCTGACCGTGCTG CACCAGGACTGGCTGAACGGCAAGGAATACAAGTGCAAGG TCTCCAACAAGGCCCTGCCAGCCCCCATCGAAAAGACCATC AGCAAGGCCAAGGGCCAGCCACGGGAGCCCCAGGTGTACA CCCTGCCCCCCTCCCGGGAGGAGATGACCAAGAACCAGGTG TCCCTGACCTGTCTGGTGAAGGGCTTCTACCCCAGCGACATC GCCGTGGAGTGGGAGAGCAACGGCCAGCCCGAGAACAACT ACAAGACCACCCCCCCAGTGCTGGACAGCGACGGCAGCTTC TTCCTGTACAGCAAGCTGACCGTGGACAAGTCCAGGTGGCA GCAGGGCAACGTGTTCAGCTGCAGCGTGATGCACGAGGCCC TGCACAACCACTACACCCAGAAGAGCCTGAGCCTGTCCCCC GGCAAG SEQ ID NO 85: (Kabat) LCDR1 RASQSISSYLN SEQ ID NO 86: (Kabat) LCDR2 YTSRLQS SEQ ID NO 87: (Kabat) LCDR3 QQGRRLWS SEQ ID NO 88: LCDR1 SQSISSY (Chothia) SEQ ID NO 89: LCDR2 YTS (Chothia) SEQ ID NO 90: LCDR3 GRRLW (Chothia) SEQ ID NO 91: VL DIQMTQSPSSLSASVGDRVTITCRASQSISSYLNWYQQKPGKAP KLLIYYTSRLQSGVPSRFSGSGSGTDFTLTISSLQPEDFATYYCQ QGRRLWSFGGGTKVEIK SEQ ID NO 92: Light DIQMTQSPSSLSASVGDRVTITCRASQSISSYLNWYQQKPGKAP Chain KLLIYYTSRLQSGVPSRFSGSGSGTDFTLTISSLQPEDFATYYCQ QGRRLWSFGGGTKVEIKRTVAAPSVFIFPPSDEQLKSGTASVVC LLNNFYPREAKVQWKVDNALQSGNSQESVTEQDSKDSTYSLS STLTLSKADYEKHKVYACEVTHQGLSSPVTKSFNRGEC SEQ ID NO 93: DNA Light GATATCCAGATGACCCAGAGCCCCAGCAGCCTGAGCGCCAG Chain CGTGGGCGACAGAGTGACCATCACCTGTCGGGCCAGCCAGA GCATCAGCAGCTACCTGAACTGGTATCAGCAGAAGCCCGGC AAGGCCCCCAAGCTGCTGATCTACTACACCAGCCGGCTGCA GAGCGGCGTGCCCAGCAGATTTTCTGGCAGCGGCAGCGGCA CCGACTTCACCCTGACCATCAGCAGCCTGCAGCCCGAGGAC TTCGCCACCTACTACTGCCAGCAGGGCCGCCGCCTGTGGTCC TTCGGCGGAGGCACCAAGGTGGAAATCAAGCGTACGGTGGC CGCTCCCAGCGTGTTCATCTTCCCCCCCAGCGACGAGCAGCT GAAGAGCGGCACCGCCAGCGTGGTGTGCCTGCTGAACAACT TCTACCCCCGGGAGGCCAAGGTGCAGTGGAAGGTGGACAAC GCCCTGCAGAGCGGCAACAGCCAGGAGAGCGTCACCGAGC AGGACAGCAAGGACTCCACCTACAGCCTGAGCAGCACCCTG ACCCTGAGCAAGGCCGACTACGAGAAGCATAAGGTGTACGC CTGCGAGGTGACCCACCAGGGCCTGTCCAGCCCCGTGACCA AGAGCTTCAACAGGGGCGAGTGC NEG086 SEQ ID NO 94: (Kabat) HCDR1 DYYMA SEQ ID NO 95: (Kabat) HCDR2 NINQIAGSTYYVDSVQG SEQ ID NO 96: (Kabat) HCDR3 GDYYGTTYWYFDV SEQ ID NO 97: HCDR1 GFTFSDY (Chothia) SEQ ID NO 98: HCDR2 NQIAGS (Chothia) SEQ ID NO 99: HCDR3 GDYYGTTYWYFDV (Chothia) SEQ ID NO 100: VH EVQLVESGGGLVQPGGSLRLSCAASGFTFSDYYMAWVRQAPG KGLEWVANINQIAGSTYYVDSVQGRFTISRDNAKNSLYLQMNS LRAEDTAVYYCARGDYYGTTYWYFDVWGQGTTVTVSS SEQ ID NO 101: Heavy EVQLVESGGGLVQPGGSLRLSCAASGFTFSDYYMAWVRQAPG Chain KGLEWVANINQIAGSTYYVDSVQGRFTISRDNAKNSLYLQMNS LRAEDTAVYYCARGDYYGTTYWYFDVWGQGTTVTVSSASTK GPSVFPLAPSSKSTSGGTAALGCLVKDYFPEPVTVSWNSGALTS GVHTFPAVLQSSGLYSLSSVVTVPSSSLGTQTYICNVNHKPSNT KVDKRVEPKSCDKTHTCPPCPAPELLGGPSVFLFPPKPKDTLMI SRTPEVTCVVVDVSHEDPEVKFNWYVDGVEVHNAKTKPREEQ YNSTYRVVSVLTVLHQDWLNGKEYKCKVSNKALPAPIEKTISK AKGQPREPQVYTLPPSREEMTKNQVSLTCLVKGFYPSDIAVEW ESNGQPENNYKTTPPVLDSDGSFFLYSKLTVDKSRWQQGNVFS CSVMHEALHNHYTQKSLSLSPGK SEQ ID NO 102: DNA GAAGTGCAATTGGTGGAAAGCGGCGGAGGCCTGGTGCAGCC Heavy TGGCGGCTCTCTGAGACTGAGCTGTGCCGCCAGCGGCTTCA Chain CCTTCAGCGACTACTACATGGCCTGGGTCCGACAGGCCCCT GGCAAGGGCCTGGAATGGGTGGCCAATATCAACCAAATCGC CGGCAGCACCTACTACGTGGACAGCGTGCAAGGCCGGTTCA CCATCAGCCGGGACAACGCCAAGAACAGCCTGTACCTGCAG ATGAACAGCCTGCGGGCCGAGGACACCGCCGTGTACTACTG CGCCAGAGGCGATTACTACGGCACCACCTACTGGTACTTCG ACGTGTGGGGCCAGGGCACCACCGTGACCGTCAGCTCAGCT AGCACCAAGGGCCCCAGCGTGTTCCCCCTGGCCCCCAGCAG CAAGAGCACCAGCGGCGGCACAGCCGCCCTGGGCTGCCTGG TGAAGGACTACTTCCCCGAGCCCGTGACCGTGTCCTGGAAC AGCGGAGCCCTGACCTCCGGCGTGCACACCTTCCCCGCCGT GCTGCAGAGCAGCGGCCTGTACAGCCTGTCCAGCGTGGTGA CAGTGCCCAGCAGCAGCCTGGGCACCCAGACCTACATCTGC AACGTGAACCACAAGCCCAGCAACACCAAGGTGGACAAGA GAGTGGAGCCCAAGAGCTGCGACAAGACCCACACCTGCCCC CCCTGCCCAGCCCCAGAGCTGCTGGGCGGACCCTCCGTGTTC CTGTTCCCCCCCAAGCCCAAGGACACCCTGATGATCAGCAG GACCCCCGAGGTGACCTGCGTGGTGGTGGACGTGAGCCACG AGGACCCAGAGGTGAAGTTCAACTGGTACGTGGACGGCGTG GAGGTGCACAACGCCAAGACCAAGCCCAGAGAGGAGCAGT ACAACAGCACCTACAGGGTGGTGTCCGTGCTGACCGTGCTG CACCAGGACTGGCTGAACGGCAAGGAATACAAGTGCAAGG TCTCCAACAAGGCCCTGCCAGCCCCCATCGAAAAGACCATC AGCAAGGCCAAGGGCCAGCCACGGGAGCCCCAGGTGTACA CCCTGCCCCCCTCCCGGGAGGAGATGACCAAGAACCAGGTG TCCCTGACCTGTCTGGTGAAGGGCTTCTACCCCAGCGACATC GCCGTGGAGTGGGAGAGCAACGGCCAGCCCGAGAACAACT ACAAGACCACCCCCCCAGTGCTGGACAGCGACGGCAGCTTC TTCCTGTACAGCAAGCTGACCGTGGACAAGTCCAGGTGGCA GCAGGGCAACGTGTTCAGCTGCAGCGTGATGCACGAGGCCC TGCACAACCACTACACCCAGAAGAGCCTGAGCCTGTCCCCC GGCAAG SEQ ID NO 103: (Kabat) LCDR1 RASQSISSYLN SEQ ID NO 104: (Kabat) LCDR2 YTSRLQS SEQ ID NO 105: (Kabat) LCDR3 QQGRRLWS SEQ ID NO 106: LCDR1 SQSISSY (Chothia) SEQ ID NO 107: LCDR2 YTS (Chothia) SEQ ID NO 108: LCDR3 GRRLW (Chothia) SEQ ID NO 109: VL DIQMTQSPSSLSASVGDRVTITCRASQSISSYLNWYQQKPGKAP KLLIYYTSRLQSGVPSRFSGSGSGTDFTLTISSLQPEDFATYYCQ QGRRLWSFGGGTKVEIK SEQ ID NO 110: Light DIQMTQSPSSLSASVGDRVTITCRASQSISSYLNWYQQKPGKAP Chain KLLIYYTSRLQSGVPSRFSGSGSGTDFTLTISSLQPEDFATYYCQ QGRRLWSFGGGTKVEIKRTVAAPSVFIFPPSDEQLKSGTASVVC LLNNFYPREAKVQWKVDNALQSGNSQESVTEQDSKDSTYSLS STLTLSKADYEKHKVYACEVTHQGLSSPVTKSFNRGEC SEQ ID NO 111: DNA Light GATATCCAGATGACCCAGAGCCCCAGCAGCCTGAGCGCCAG Chain CGTGGGCGACAGAGTGACCATCACCTGTCGGGCCAGCCAGA GCATCAGCAGCTACCTGAACTGGTATCAGCAGAAGCCCGGC AAGGCCCCCAAGCTGCTGATCTACTACACCAGCCGGCTGCA GAGCGGCGTGCCCAGCAGATTTTCTGGCAGCGGCAGCGGCA CCGACTTCACCCTGACCATCAGCAGCCTGCAGCCCGAGGAC TTCGCCACCTACTACTGCCAGCAGGGCCGCCGCCTGTGGTCC TTCGGCGGAGGCACCAAGGTGGAAATCAAGCGTACGGTGGC CGCTCCCAGCGTGTTCATCTTCCCCCCCAGCGACGAGCAGCT GAAGAGCGGCACCGCCAGCGTGGTGTGCCTGCTGAACAACT TCTACCCCCGGGAGGCCAAGGTGCAGTGGAAGGTGGACAAC GCCCTGCAGAGCGGCAACAGCCAGGAGAGCGTCACCGAGC AGGACAGCAAGGACTCCACCTACAGCCTGAGCAGCACCCTG ACCCTGAGCAAGGCCGACTACGAGAAGCATAAGGTGTACGC CTGCGAGGTGACCCACCAGGGCCTGTCCAGCCCCGTGACCA AGAGCTTCAACAGGGGCGAGTGC NEG087 SEQ ID NO 112: (Kabat) HCDR1 DYYMA SEQ ID NO 113: (Kabat) HCDR2 SINQNTGSTYYLDSVRG SEQ ID NO 114: (Kabat) HCDR3 GDYYGTTYVVYFDV SEQ ID NO 115: HCDR1 GFTFSDY (Chothia) SEQ ID NO 116: HCDR2 NQNTGS (Chothia) SEQ ID NO 117: HCDR3 GDYYGTTYWYFDV (Chothia) SEQ ID NO 118: VH EVQLVESGGGLVQPGGSLRLSCAASGFTFSDYYMAWVRQAPG KGLEWVASINQNTGSTYYLDSVRGRFTISRDNAKNSLYLQMNS LRAEDTAVYYCARGDYYGTTYWYFDVWGQGTTVTVSS SEQ ID NO 119: Heavy EVQLVESGGGLVQPGGSLRLSCAASGFTFSDYYMAWVRQAPG Chain KGLEWVASINQNTGSTYYLDSVRGRFTISRDNAKNSLYLQMNS LRAEDTAVYYCARGDYYGTTYWYFDVWGQGTTVTVSSASTK GPSVFPLAPSSKSTSGGTAALGCLVKDYFPEPVTVSWNSGALTS GVHTFPAVLQSSGLYSLSSVVTVPSSSLGTQTYICNVNHKPSNT KVDKRVEPKSCDKTHTCPPCPAPELLGGPSVFLFPPKPKDTLMI SRTPEVTCVVVDVSHEDPEVKFNWYVDGVEVHNAKTKPREEQ YNSTYRVVSVLTVLHQDWLNGKEYKCKVSNKALPAPIEKTISK AKGQPREPQVYTLPPSREEMTKNQVSLTCLVKGFYPSDIAVEW ESNGQPENNYKTTPPVLDSDGSFFLYSKLTVDKSRWQQGNVFS CSVMHEALHNHYTQKSLSLSPGK SEQ ID NO 120: DNA GAAGTGCAATTGGTGGAAAGCGGCGGAGGCCTGGTGCAGCC Heavy TGGCGGCTCTCTGAGACTGAGCTGTGCCGCCAGCGGCTTCA Chain CCTTCAGCGACTACTACATGGCCTGGGTCCGACAGGCCCCT GGCAAGGGCCTGGAATGGGTGGCCAGTATCAACCAAAACAC CGGCAGCACCTACTACCTGGACAGCGTGCGAGGCCGGTTCA CCATCAGCCGGGACAACGCCAAGAACAGCCTGTACCTGCAG ATGAACAGCCTGCGGGCCGAGGACACCGCCGTGTACTACTG CGCCAGAGGCGATTACTACGGCACCACCTACTGGTACTTCG ACGTGTGGGGCCAGGGCACCACCGTGACCGTCAGCTCAGCT AGCACCAAGGGCCCCAGCGTGTTCCCCCTGGCCCCCAGCAG CAAGAGCACCAGCGGCGGCACAGCCGCCCTGGGCTGCCTGG TGAAGGACTACTTCCCCGAGCCCGTGACCGTGTCCTGGAAC AGCGGAGCCCTGACCTCCGGCGTGCACACCTTCCCCGCCGT GCTGCAGAGCAGCGGCCTGTACAGCCTGTCCAGCGTGGTGA CAGTGCCCAGCAGCAGCCTGGGCACCCAGACCTACATCTGC AACGTGAACCACAAGCCCAGCAACACCAAGGTGGACAAGA GAGTGGAGCCCAAGAGCTGCGACAAGACCCACACCTGCCCC CCCTGCCCAGCCCCAGAGCTGCTGGGCGGACCCTCCGTGTTC CTGTTCCCCCCCAAGCCCAAGGACACCCTGATGATCAGCAG GACCCCCGAGGTGACCTGCGTGGTGGTGGACGTGAGCCACG AGGACCCAGAGGTGAAGTTCAACTGGTACGTGGACGGCGTG GAGGTGCACAACGCCAAGACCAAGCCCAGAGAGGAGCAGT ACAACAGCACCTACAGGGTGGTGTCCGTGCTGACCGTGCTG CACCAGGACTGGCTGAACGGCAAGGAATACAAGTGCAAGG TCTCCAACAAGGCCCTGCCAGCCCCCATCGAAAAGACCATC AGCAAGGCCAAGGGCCAGCCACGGGAGCCCCAGGTGTACA CCCTGCCCCCCTCCCGGGAGGAGATGACCAAGAACCAGGTG TCCCTGACCTGTCTGGTGAAGGGCTTCTACCCCAGCGACATC GCCGTGGAGTGGGAGAGCAACGGCCAGCCCGAGAACAACT ACAAGACCACCCCCCCAGTGCTGGACAGCGACGGCAGCTTC TTCCTGTACAGCAAGCTGACCGTGGACAAGTCCAGGTGGCA GCAGGGCAACGTGTTCAGCTGCAGCGTGATGCACGAGGCCC TGCACAACCACTACACCCAGAAGAGCCTGAGCCTGTCCCCC GGCAAG SEQ ID NO 121: (Kabat) LCDR1 RASQSISSYLN SEQ ID NO 122: (Kabat) LCDR2 YTSRLQS SEQ ID NO 123: (Kabat) LCDR3 QQGRRLWS SEQ ID NO 124: LCDR1 SQSISSY (Chothia) SEQ ID NO 125: LCDR2 YTS (Chothia) SEQ ID NO 126: LCDR3 GRRLW (Chothia) SEQ ID NO 127: VL DIQMTQSPSSLSASVGDRVTITCRASQSISSYLNWYQQKPGKAP KLLIYYTSRLQSGVPSRFSGSGSGTDFTLTISSLQPEDFATYYCQ QGRRLWSFGGGTKVEIK SEQ ID NO 128: Light DIQMTQSPSSLSASVGDRVTITCRASQSISSYLNWYQQKPGKAP Chain KLLIYYTSRLQSGVPSRFSGSGSGTDFTLTISSLQPEDFATYYCQ QGRRLWSFGGGTKVEIKRTVAAPSVFIFPPSDEQLKSGTASVVC LLNNFYPREAKVQWKVDNALQSGNSQESVTEQDSKDSTYSLS STLTLSKADYEKHKVYACEVTHQGLSSPVTKSFNRGEC SEQ ID NO 129: DNA Light GATATCCAGATGACCCAGAGCCCCAGCAGCCTGAGCGCCAG Chain CGTGGGCGACAGAGTGACCATCACCTGTCGGGCCAGCCAGA GCATCAGCAGCTACCTGAACTGGTATCAGCAGAAGCCCGGC AAGGCCCCCAAGCTGCTGATCTACTACACCAGCCGGCTGCA GAGCGGCGTGCCCAGCAGATTTTCTGGCAGCGGCAGCGGCA CCGACTTCACCCTGACCATCAGCAGCCTGCAGCCCGAGGAC TTCGCCACCTACTACTGCCAGCAGGGCCGCCGCCTGTGGTCC TTCGGCGGAGGCACCAAGGTGGAAATCAAGCGTACGGTGGC CGCTCCCAGCGTGTTCATCTTCCCCCCCAGCGACGAGCAGCT GAAGAGCGGCACCGCCAGCGTGGTGTGCCTGCTGAACAACT TCTACCCCCGGGAGGCCAAGGTGCAGTGGAAGGTGGACAAC GCCCTGCAGAGCGGCAACAGCCAGGAGAGCGTCACCGAGC AGGACAGCAAGGACTCCACCTACAGCCTGAGCAGCACCCTG ACCCTGAGCAAGGCCGACTACGAGAAGCATAAGGTGTACGC CTGCGAGGTGACCCACCAGGGCCTGTCCAGCCCCGTGACCA AGAGCTTCAACAGGGGCGAGTGC 20376 SEQ ID NO 130: (Kabat) HCDR1 SYAIS SEQ ID NO 131: (Kabat) HCDR2 GIIPMSGRTTYAQKFQG SEQ ID NO 132: (Kabat) HCDR3 DYGPEAPDYGQSTSYFWYYAFDP SEQ ID NO 133: HCDR1 GGTFSSY (Chothia) SEQ ID NO 134: HCDR2 IPMSGR (Chothia) SEQ ID NO 135: HCDR3 DYGPEAPDYGQSTSYFWYYAFDP (Chothia) SEQ ID NO 136: VH QVQLVQSGAEVKKPGSSVKVSCKASGGTFSSYAISWVRQAPG QGLEWMGGIIPMSGRTTYAQKFQGRVTITADESTSTAYMELSS LRSEDTAVYYCARDYGPEAPDYGQSTSYFWYYAFDPWGQGTL VTVSS SEQ ID NO 137: Heavy QVQLVQSGAEVKKPGSSVKVSCKASGGTFSSYAISWVRQAPG Chain QGLEWMGGIIPMSGRTTYAQKFQGRVTITADESTSTAYMELSS LRSEDTAVYYCARDYGPEAPDYGQSTSYFWYYAFDPWGQGTL VTVSSASTKGPSVFPLAPSSKSTSGGTAALGCLVKDYFPEPVTV SWNSGALTSGVHTFPAVLQSSGLYSLSSVVTVPSSSLGTQTYIC NVNHKPSNTKVDKRVEPKSCDKTHTCPPCPAPELLGGPSVFLFP PKPKDTLMISRTPEVTCVVVDVSHEDPEVKFNWYVDGVEVHN AKTKPREEQYNSTYRVVSVLTVLHQDWLNGKEYKCKVSNKA LPAPIEKTISKAKGQPREPQVYTLPPSREEMTKNQVSLTCLVKG FYPSDIAVEWESNGQPENNYKTTPPVLDSDGSFFLYSKLTVDKS RWQQGNVFSCSVMHEALHNHYTQKSLSLSPGK SEQ ID NO 138: DNA CAGGTGCAGCTGGTGCAGTCAGGCGCCGAAGTGAAGAAACC Heavy CGGCTCTAGCGTGAAAGTCAGCTGTAAAGCTAGTGGGGGCA Chain CCTTCTCTAGCTACGCTATTAGCTGGGTCAGACAGGCCCCAG GTCAAGGCTTGGAGTGGATGGGCGGAATTATCCCTATGAGC GGTAGAACTACCTACGCTCAGAAATTTCAGGGTAGAGTGAC TATCACCGCCGACGAGTCTACTAGCACCGCCTATATGGAAC TGAGTTCTCTGAGGTCAGAGGACACCGCCGTCTACTACTGC GCTAGAGACTACGGCCCCGAGGCCCCCGACTACGGTCAATC AACTAGCTACTTCTGGTACTACGCCTTCGACCCTTGGGGTCA AGGCACCCTGGTCACCGTGTCTTCAGCTAGCACTAAGGGCC CAAGTGTGTTTCCCCTGGCCCCCAGCAGCAAGTCTACTTCCG GCGGAACTGCTGCCCTGGGTTGCCTGGTGAAGGACTACTTC CCCGAGCCCGTGACAGTGTCCTGGAACTCTGGGGCTCTGAC TTCCGGCGTGCACACCTTCCCCGCCGTGCTGCAGAGCAGCG GCCTGTACAGCCTGAGCAGCGTGGTGACAGTGCCCTCCAGC TCTCTGGGAACCCAGACCTATATCTGCAACGTGAACCACAA GCCCAGCAACACCAAGGTGGACAAGAGAGTGGAGCCCAAG AGCTGCGACAAGACCCACACCTGCCCCCCCTGCCCAGCTCC AGAACTGCTGGGAGGGCCTTCCGTGTTCCTGTTCCCCCCCAA GCCCAAGGACACCCTGATGATCAGCAGGACCCCCGAGGTGA CCTGCGTGGTGGTGGACGTGTCCCACGAGGACCCAGAGGTG AAGTTCAACTGGTACGTGGACGGCGTGGAGGTGCACAACGC CAAGACCAAGCCCAGAGAGGAGCAGTACAACAGCACCTAC AGGGTGGTGTCCGTGCTGACCGTGCTGCACCAGGACTGGCT GAACGGCAAAGAATACAAGTGCAAAGTCTCCAACAAGGCC CTGCCAGCCCCAATCGAAAAGACAATCAGCAAGGCCAAGG GCCAGCCACGGGAGCCCCAGGTGTACACCCTGCCCCCCAGC CGGGAGGAGATGACCAAGAACCAGGTGTCCCTGACCTGTCT GGTGAAGGGCTTCTACCCCAGCGATATCGCCGTGGAGTGGG AGAGCAACGGCCAGCCCGAGAACAACTACAAGACCACCCC CCCAGTGCTGGACAGCGACGGCAGCTTCTTCCTGTACAGCA AGCTGACCGTGGACAAGTCCAGGTGGCAGCAGGGCAACGTG TTCAGCTGCAGCGTGATGCACGAGGCCCTGCACAACCACTA CACCCAGAAGTCCCTGAGCCTGAGCCCCGGCAAG SEQ ID NO 139: (Kabat) LCDR1 SGDNIPSYFVH SEQ ID NO 140: (Kabat) LCDR2 DDNDRPS SEQ ID NO 141: (Kabat) LCDR3 SSWDQDTVV SEQ ID NO 142: LCDR1 DNIPSYF (Chothia) SEQ ID NO 143: LCDR2 DDN (Chothia) SEQ ID NO 144: LCDR3 WDQDTV (Chothia) SEQ ID NO 145: VL DIELTQPPSVSVSPGQTASITCSGDNIPSYFVHWYQQKPGQAPV LVIYDDNDRPSGIPERFSGSNSGNTATLTISGTQAEDEADYYCSS WDQDTVVFGGGTKLTVL SEQ ID NO 146: Light DIELTQPPSVSVSPGQTASITCSGDNIPSYFVHWYQQKPGQAPV Chain LVIYDDNDRPSGIPERFSGSNSGNTATLTISGTQAEDEADYYCSS WDQDTVVFGGGTKLTVLGQPKAAPSVTLFPPSSEELQANKATL VCLISDFYPGAVTVAWKADSSPVKAGVETTTPSKQSNNKYAAS SYLSLTPEQWKSHRSYSCQVTHEGSTVEKTVAPTECS SEQ ID NO 147: DNA Light GATATCGAGCTGACTCAGCCCCCTAGCGTCAGCGTCAGCCC Chain TGGTCAAACCGCCTCTATCACCTGTAGCGGCGATAATATCCC TAGCTACTTCGTGCACTGGTATCAGCAGAAGCCCGGTCAAG CCCCCGTGCTGGTGATCTACGACGATAACGATAGACCTAGC GGAATCCCCGAGCGGTTTAGCGGCTCTAATAGCGGTAACAC CGCTACCCTGACTATTAGCGGCACTCAGGCCGAGGACGAGG CCGACTACTACTGCTCTAGCTGGGATCAGGACACCGTGGTG TTCGGCGGAGGCACTAAGCTGACCGTGCTGGGTCAACCTAA GGCTGCCCCCAGCGTGACCCTGTTCCCCCCCAGCAGCGAGG AGCTGCAGGCCAACAAGGCCACCCTGGTGTGCCTGATCAGC GACTTCTACCCAGGCGCCGTGACCGTGGCCTGGAAGGCCGA CAGCAGCCCCGTGAAGGCCGGCGTGGAGACCACCACCCCCA GCAAGCAGAGCAACAACAAGTACGCCGCCAGCAGCTACCTG AGCCTGACCCCCGAGCAGTGGAAGAGCCACAGGTCCTACAG CTGCCAGGTGACCCACGAGGGCAGCACCGTGGAAAAGACC GTGGCCCCAACCGAGTGCAGC 20507 SEQ ID NO 148: (Kabat) HCDR1 SYAIS SEQ ID NO 149: (Kabat) HCDR2 TIGPFEGQPRYAQKFQG SEQ ID NO 150: (Kabat) HCDR3 GGYISDFDV SEQ ID NO 151: HCDR1 GGTFSSY (Chothia) SEQ ID NO 152: HCDR2 GPFEGQ (Chothia) SEQ ID NO 153: HCDR3 GYISDFDV (Chothia) SEQ ID NO 154: VH QVQLVQSGAEVKKPGSSVKVSCKASGGTFSSYAISWVRQAPG QGLEWMGTIGPFEGQPRYAQKFQGRVTITADESTSTAYMELSS LRSEDTAVYYCARGGYISDFDVWGQGTLVTVSS SEQ ID NO 155: Heavy QVQLVQSGAEVKKPGSSVKVSCKASGGTFSSYAISWVRQAPG Chain QGLEWMGTIGPFEGQPRYAQKFQGRVTITADESTSTAYMELSS LRSEDTAVYYCARGGYISDFDVWGQGTLVTVSSASTKGPSVFP LAPSSKSTSGGTAALGCLVKDYFPEPVTVSWNSGALTSGVHTF PAVLQSSGLYSLSSVVTVPSSSLGTQTYICNVNHKPSNTKVDKR VEPKSCDKTHTCPPCPAPELLGGPSVFLFPPKPKDTLMISRTPEV TCVVVDVSHEDPEVKFNWYVDGVEVHNAKTKPREEQYNSTY RVVSVLTVLHQDWLNGKEYKCKVSNKALPAPIEKTISKAKGQP REPQVYTLPPSREEMTKNQVSLTCLVKGFYPSDIAVEWESNGQ PENNYKTTPPVLDSDGSFFLYSKLTVDKSRWQQGNVFSCSVM HEALHNHYTQKSLSLSPGK SEQ ID NO 156: DNA CAGGTGCAATTGGTGCAGAGCGGTGCCGAAGTGAAAAAACC Heavy GGGCAGCAGCGTGAAAGTTAGCTGCAAAGCATCCGGAGGG Chain ACGTTTAGCAGCTATGCGATTAGCTGGGTGCGCCAGGCCCC GGGCCAGGGCCTCGAGTGGATGGGCACTATCGGTCCGTTCG AAGGCCAGCCGCGTTACGCCCAGAAATTTCAGGGCCGGGTG ACCATTACCGCCGATGAAAGCACCAGCACCGCCTATATGGA ACTGAGCAGCCTGCGCAGCGAAGATACGGCCGTGTATTATT GCGCGCGTGGTGGTTACATCTCTGACTTCGATGTTTGGGGCC AAGGCACCCTGGTGACTGTTAGCTCAGCCTCCACCAAGGGT CCATCGGTCTTCCCCCTGGCACCCTCCTCCAAGAGCACCTCT GGGGGCACAGCGGCCCTGGGCTGCCTGGTCAAGGACTACTT CCCCGAACCGGTGACGGTGTCGTGGAACTCAGGCGCCCTGA CCAGCGGCGTGCACACCTTCCCGGCTGTCCTACAGTCCTCAG GACTCTACTCCCTCAGCAGCGTGGTGACCGTGCCCTCCAGCA GCTTGGGCACCCAGACCTACATCTGCAACGTGAATCACAAG CCCAGCAACACCAAGGTGGACAAGAGAGTTGAGCCCAAATC TTGTGACAAAACTCACACATGCCCACCGTGCCCAGCACCTG AACTCCTGGGGGGACCGTCAGTCTTCCTCTTCCCCCCAAAAC CCAAGGACACCCTCATGATCTCCCGGACCCCTGAGGTCACA TGCGTGGTGGTGGACGTGAGCCACGAAGACCCTGAGGTCAA GTTCAACTGGTACGTGGACGGCGTGGAGGTGCATAATGCCA AGACAAAGCCGCGGGAGGAGCAGTACAACAGCACGTACCG GGTGGTCAGCGTCCTCACCGTCCTGCACCAGGACTGGCTGA ATGGCAAGGAGTACAAGTGCAAGGTCTCCAACAAAGCCCTC CCAGCCCCCATCGAGAAAACCATCTCCAAAGCCAAAGGGCA GCCCCGAGAACCACAGGTGTACACCCTGCCCCCATCCCGGG AGGAGATGACCAAGAACCAGGTCAGCCTGACCTGCCTGGTC AAAGGCTTCTATCCCAGCGACATCGCCGTGGAGTGGGAGAG CAATGGGCAGCCGGAGAACAACTACAAGACCACGCCTCCCG TGCTGGACTCCGACGGCTCCTTCTTCCTCTACAGCAAGCTCA CCGTGGACAAGAGCAGGTGGCAGCAGGGGAACGTCTTCTCA TGCTCCGTGATGCATGAGGCTCTGCACAACCACTACACGCA GAAGAGCCTCTCCCTGTCTCCGGGTAAA SEQ ID NO 157: (Kabat) LCDR1 RASQSISNYLA SEQ ID NO 158: (Kabat) LCDR2 DASSLQS SEQ ID NO 159: (Kabat) LCDR3 QQYYESIT SEQ ID NO 160: LCDR1 RASQSISNYLA (Chothia) SEQ ID NO 161: LCDR2 DASSLQS (Chothia) SEQ ID NO 162: LCDR3 QQYYESIT (Chothia) SEQ ID NO 163: VL DIQMTQSPSSLSASVGDRVTITCRASQSISNYLAWYQQKPGKAP KLLIYDASSLQSGVPSRFSGSGSGTDFTLTISSLQPEDFATYYCQ QYYYESITFGQGTKVEIKR SEQ ID NO 164: Light DIQMTQSPSSLSASVGDRVTITCRASQSISNYLAWYQQKPGKAP Chain KLLIYDASSLQSGVPSRFSGSGSGTDFTLTISSLQPEDFATYYCQ QYYYESITFGQGTKVEIKRTVAAPSVFIFPPSDEQLKSGTASVVC LLNNFYPREAKVQWKVDNALQSGNSQESVTEQDSKDSTYSLS STLTLSKADYEKHKVYACEVTHQGLSSPVTKSFNRGEC SEQ ID NO 165: DNA Light GATATCCAGATGACCCAGAGCCCGAGCAGCCTGAGCGCCAG Chain CGTGGGCGATCGCGTGACCATTACCTGCAGAGCCAGCCAGT CTATTTCTAACTACCTGGCTTGGTACCAGCAGAAACCGGGC AAAGCGCCGAAACTATTAATCTACGACGCTTCTTCTCTGCAA AGCGGCGTGCCGAGCCGCTTTAGCGGCAGCGGATCCGGCAC CGATTTCACCCTGACCATTAGCTCTCTGCAACCGGAAGACTT TGCGACCTATTATTGCCAGCAGTACTACTACGAATCTATCAC CTTTGGCCAGGGCACGAAAGTTGAAATTAAACGTACGGTGG CCGCTCCCAGCGTGTTCATCTTCCCCCCCAGCGACGAGCAGC TGAAGAGCGGCACCGCCAGCGTGGTGTGCCTGCTGAACAAC TTCTACCCCCGGGAGGCCAAGGTGCAGTGGAAGGTGGACAA CGCCCTGCAGAGCGGCAACAGCCAGGAAAGCGTCACCGAG CAGGACAGCAAGGACTCCACCTACAGCCTGAGCAGCACCCT GACCCTGAGCAAGGCCGACTACGAGAAGCACAAGGTGTAC GCCTGCGAGGTGACCCACCAGGGCCTGTCCAGCCCCGTGAC CAAGAGCTTCAACCGGGGCGAGTGT

Other antibodies of the present disclosure include those where the amino acids or nucleic acids encoding the amino acids have been mutated, yet have at least 60, 70, 80, 90 or 95 percent identity to the sequences described in Table 3. In some aspects, it includes mutant amino acid sequences wherein no more than 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5 amino acids have been mutated in the variable regions when compared with the variable regions depicted in the sequence described in Table 3, while retaining substantially the same therapeutic activity.

Since each of these antibodies can bind to cKIT, the VH, VL, full length light chain, and full length heavy chain sequences (amino acid sequences and the nucleotide sequences encoding the amino acid sequences) can be “mixed and matched” to create other cKIT-binding antibodies. Such “mixed and matched” cKIT-binding antibodies can be tested using the binding assays known in the art (e.g., ELISAs, and other assays described in the Example section). When these chains are mixed and matched, a VH sequence from a particular VH/VL pairing should be replaced with a structurally similar VH sequence. Likewise a full length heavy chain sequence from a particular full length heavy chain/full length light chain pairing should be replaced with a structurally similar full length heavy chain sequence. Likewise, a VL sequence from a particular VH/VL pairing should be replaced with a structurally similar VL sequence. Likewise, a full length light chain sequence from a particular full length heavy chain/full length light chain pairing should be replaced with a structurally similar full length light chain sequence. Accordingly, in one aspect, the disclosure provides for an isolated monoclonal antibody or antigen binding region thereof having: a heavy chain variable region comprising an amino acid sequence selected from the group consisting of SEQ ID NOs: 9, 28, 46, 64, 82, 100, 118, 136 or 154 (Table 3); and a light chain variable region comprising an amino acid sequence selected from the group consisting of SEQ ID NOs: 18, 37, 55, 73, 91, 109, 127, 145 or 163 (Table 3); wherein the antibody specifically binds to cKIT.

In another aspect, the disclosure provides (i) an isolated monoclonal antibody having: a full length heavy chain comprising an amino acid sequence that has been optimized for expression in the cell of a mammalian selected from the group consisting of SEQ ID NOs: 11, 29, 47, 65, 83, 101, 119, 137 or 155; and a full length light chain comprising an amino acid sequence that has been optimized for expression in the cell of a mammalian selected from the group consisting of SEQ ID NOs: 20, 21, 38, 56, 74, 92, 110, 128, 146 or 164; or (ii) a functional protein comprising an antigen binding portion thereof.

In another aspect, the present disclosure provides cKIT-binding antibodies that comprise the heavy chain and light chain CDR1s, CDR2s and CDR3s as described in Table 3, or combinations thereof. The amino acid sequences of the VH CDR1s of the antibodies are shown in SEQ ID NOs: 3, 22, 40, 58, 76, 94, 112, 130 and 148. The amino acid sequences of the VH CDR2s of the antibodies and are shown in SEQ ID NOs: 4, 23, 41, 59, 77, 95, 113, 131 and 149. The amino acid sequences of the VH CDR3s of the antibodies are shown in SEQ ID NOs: 5, 24, 42, 60, 78, 96, 114, 132 and 150. The amino acid sequences of the VL CDR1s of the antibodies are shown in SEQ ID NOs: 12, 31, 49, 67, 85, 103, 121, 139 and 157. The amino acid sequences of the VL CDR2s of the antibodies are shown in SEQ ID NOs 13, 32, 50, 68, 86, 104, 122, 140 and 158. The amino acid sequences of the VL CDR3s of the antibodies are shown in SEQ ID NOs:14, 33, 51, 69, 87, 105, 123, 141 and 159.

Given that each of these antibodies can bind to cKIT and that antigen-binding specificity is provided primarily by the CDR1, 2 and 3 regions, the VH CDR1, 2 and 3 sequences and VL CDR1, 2 and 3 sequences can be “mixed and matched” (i.e., CDRs from different antibodies can be mixed and match, although each antibody must contain a VH CDR1, 2 and 3 and a VL CDR1, 2 and 3 to create other C5-binding binding molecules. Such “mixed and matched” cKIT-binding antibodies can be tested using the binding assays known in the art and those described in the Examples (e.g., ELISAs). When VH CDR sequences are mixed and matched, the CDR1, CDR2 and/or CDR3 sequence from a particular VH sequence should be replaced with a structurally similar CDR sequence(s). Likewise, when VL CDR sequences are mixed and matched, the CDR1, CDR2 and/or CDR3 sequence from a particular VL sequence should be replaced with a structurally similar CDR sequence(s). It will be readily apparent to the ordinarily skilled artisan that novel VH and VL sequences can be created by substituting one or more VH and/or VL CDR region sequences with structurally similar sequences from the CDR sequences shown herein for monoclonal antibodies of the present disclosure.

Accordingly, the present disclosure provides an isolated monoclonal antibody or antigen binding region thereof comprising a heavy chain CDR1 comprising an amino acid sequence selected from the group consisting of SEQ ID NOs: 3, 22, 40, 58, 76, 94, 112 and 130; a heavy chain CDR2 comprising an amino acid sequence selected from the group consisting of SEQ ID NOs: 4, 23, 41, 59, 77, 95, 113 and 131; a heavy chain CDR3 comprising an amino acid sequence selected from the group consisting of SEQ ID NOs: 5, 24, 42, 60, 78, 96, 114 and 132; a light chain CDR1 comprising an amino acid sequence selected from the group consisting of SEQ ID NOs: 12, 31, 49, 67, 85, 103, 121 and 139; a light chain CDR2 comprising an amino acid sequence selected from the group consisting of SEQ ID NOs: 13, 32, 50, 68, 86, 104, 122 and 140; and a light chain CDR3 comprising an amino acid sequence selected from the group consisting of SEQ ID NOs: 14, 33, 51, 69, 87, 105, 123 and 141; wherein the antibody specifically binds cKIT.

In a specific aspect, an antibody or antibody fragment (e.g., antigen binding fragments) that specifically binds to cKIT comprising a heavy chain CDR1 of SEQ ID NO:3, a heavy chain CDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 4; a heavy chain CDR3 of SEQ ID NO:5; a light chain CDR1 of SEQ ID NO:12; a light chain CDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 13; and a light chain CDR3 of SEQ ID NO: 14.

In a specific aspect, an antibody or antibody fragment (e.g., antigen binding fragments) that specifically binds to cKIT comprising a heavy chain CDR1 of SEQ ID NO:22, a heavy chain CDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 23; a heavy chain CDR3 of SEQ ID NO:24; a light chain CDR1 of SEQ ID NO:31; a light chain CDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 32; and a light chain CDR3 of SEQ ID NO: 33.

In a specific aspect, an antibody or antibody fragment (e.g., antigen binding fragments) that specifically binds to cKIT comprising a heavy chain CDR1 of SEQ ID NO:40, a heavy chain CDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 41; a heavy chain CDR3 of SEQ ID NO:42; a light chain CDR1 of SEQ ID NO:49; a light chain CDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 50; and a light chain CDR3 of SEQ ID NO: 51.

In a specific aspect, an antibody or antibody fragment (e.g., antigen binding fragments) that specifically binds to cKIT comprising a heavy chain CDR1 of SEQ ID NO:58, a heavy chain CDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 59; a heavy chain CDR3 of SEQ ID NO:60; a light chain CDR1 of SEQ ID NO:67; a light chain CDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 68; and a light chain CDR3 of SEQ ID NO: 69.

In a specific aspect, an antibody or antibody fragment (e.g., antigen binding fragments) that specifically binds to cKIT comprising a heavy chain CDR1 of SEQ ID NO:76, a heavy chain CDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 77; a heavy chain CDR3 of SEQ ID NO:78; a light chain CDR1 of SEQ ID NO:85; a light chain CDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 86; and a light chain CDR3 of SEQ ID NO: 87.

In a specific aspect, an antibody or antibody fragment (e.g., antigen binding fragments) that specifically binds to cKIT comprising a heavy chain CDR1 of SEQ ID NO:94, a heavy chain CDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 95; a heavy chain CDR3 of SEQ ID NO:96; a light chain CDR1 of SEQ ID NO:103; a light chain CDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 104; and a light chain CDR3 of SEQ ID NO: 105.

In a specific aspect, an antibody or antibody fragment (e.g., antigen binding fragments) that specifically binds to cKIT comprising a heavy chain CDR1 of SEQ ID NO:112, a heavy chain CDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 113; a heavy chain CDR3 of SEQ ID NO:114; a light chain CDR1 of SEQ ID NO:121; a light chain CDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 122; and a light chain CDR3 of SEQ ID NO: 123.

In a specific aspect, an antibody or antibody fragment (e.g., antigen binding fragments) that specifically binds to cKIT comprising a heavy chain CDR1 of SEQ ID NO:130, a heavy chain CDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 131; a heavy chain CDR3 of SEQ ID NO:132; a light chain CDR1 of SEQ ID NO:139; a light chain CDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 140; and a light chain CDR3 of SEQ ID NO: 141.

In a specific aspect, an antibody or antibody fragment (e.g., antigen binding fragments) that specifically binds to cKIT comprising a heavy chain CDR1 of SEQ ID NO:148, a heavy chain CDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 149; a heavy chain CDR3 of SEQ ID NO:150; a light chain CDR1 of SEQ ID NO:157; a light chain CDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 158; and a light chain CDR3 of SEQ ID NO: 159.

In certain aspects, an antibody that specifically binds to cKIT is an antibody or antibody fragment (e.g., antigen binding fragment) that is described in Table 3.

1. Identification of Epitopes and Antibodies that Bind to the Same Epitope

The present disclosure provides antibodies and antibody fragments (e.g., antigen binding fragments) that bind to an epitope of within the extracellular domain of the cKIT receptor. In certain aspects the antibodies and antibody fragments can bind to epitopes with domains 1-3 of the cKIT extracellular domain.

The present disclosure also provides antibodies and antibody fragments (e.g., antigen binding fragments) that bind to the same epitope as do the anti-cKIT antibodies described in Table 3. Additional antibodies and antibody fragments (e.g., antigen binding fragments) can therefore be identified based on their ability to cross-compete (e.g., to competitively inhibit the binding of, in a statistically significant manner) with other antibodies in cKIT binding assays. The ability of a test antibody to inhibit the binding of antibodies and antibody fragments (e.g., antigen binding fragments) of the present disclosure to a cKIT protein (e.g., human cKIT) demonstrates that the test antibody can compete with that antibody or antibody fragment (e.g., antigen binding fragments) for binding to cKIT; such an antibody may, according to non-limiting theory, bind to the same or a related (e.g., a structurally similar or spatially proximal) epitope on the cKIT protein as the antibody or antibody fragment (e.g., antigen binding fragments) with which it competes. In a certain aspect, the antibody that binds to the same epitope on cKIT as the antibodies or antibody fragments (e.g., antigen binding fragments) of the present disclosure is a human or humanized monoclonal antibody. Such human or humanized monoclonal antibodies can be prepared and isolated as described herein.

2. Further Alteration of the Framework of Fc Region

The present disclosure provides site-specific labeled immunoconjugates. These immunoconjugates can comprise modified antibodies or antigen binding fragments thereof that further comprise modifications to framework residues within VH and/or VL, e.g. to improve the properties of the antibody. Typically such framework modifications are made to decrease the immunogenicity of the antibody. For example, one approach is to “back-mutate” one or more framework residues to the corresponding germline sequence. More specifically, an antibody that has undergone somatic mutation may contain framework residues that differ from the germline sequence from which the antibody is derived. Such residues can be identified by comparing the antibody framework sequences to the germline sequences from which the antibody is derived. To return the framework region sequences to their germline configuration, the somatic mutations can be “back-mutated” to the germline sequence by, for example, site-directed mutagenesis. Such “back-mutated” antibodies are also intended to be encompassed.

Another type of framework modification involves mutating one or more residues within the framework region, or even within one or more CDR regions, to remove T-cell epitopes to thereby reduce the potential immunogenicity of the antibody. This approach is also referred to as “deimmunization” and is described in further detail in U.S. Patent Publication No. 2003/0153043 by Carr et al.

In addition or alternative to modifications made within the framework or CDR regions, antibodies can be engineered to include modifications within the Fc region, typically to alter one or more functional properties of the antibody, such as serum half-life, complement fixation, Fc receptor binding, and/or antigen-dependent cellular cytotoxicity. Furthermore, an antibody can be chemically modified (e.g., one or more chemical moieties can be attached to the antibody) or be modified to alter its glycosylation, again to alter one or more functional properties of the antibody. Each of these aspects is described in further detail below.

In one aspect, the hinge region of CH1 is modified such that the number of cysteine residues in the hinge region is altered, e.g., increased or decreased. This approach is described further in U.S. Pat. No. 5,677,425 by Bodmer et al. The number of cysteine residues in the hinge region of CH1 is altered to, for example, facilitate assembly of the light and heavy chains or to increase or decrease the stability of the antibody.

In another aspect, the Fc hinge region of an antibody is mutated to decrease the biological half-life of the antibody. More specifically, one or more amino acid mutations are introduced into the CH₂—CH₃ domain interface region of the Fc-hinge fragment such that the antibody has impaired Staphylococcal protein A (SpA) binding relative to native Fc-hinge domain SpA binding. This approach is described in further detail in U.S. Pat. No. 6,165,745 by Ward et al.

In yet other aspects, the Fc region is altered by replacing at least one amino acid residue with a different amino acid residue to alter the effector functions of the antibody. For example, one or more amino acids can be replaced with a different amino acid residue such that the antibody has an altered affinity for an effector ligand but retains the antigen-binding ability of the parent antibody. The effector ligand to which affinity is altered can be, for example, an Fc receptor or the C1 component of complement. This approach is described in, e.g., U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,624,821 and 5,648,260, both by Winter et al.

In another aspect, one or more amino acids selected from amino acid residues can be replaced with a different amino acid residue such that the antibody has altered Clq binding and/or reduced or abolished complement dependent cytotoxicity (CDC). This approach is described in, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 6,194,551 by Idusogie et al.

In another aspect, one or more amino acid residues are altered to thereby alter the ability of the antibody to fix complement. This approach is described in, e.g., the PCT Publication WO 94/29351 by Bodmer et al. In a specific aspect, one or more amino acids of an antibody or antigen binding fragment thereof of the present disclosure are replaced by one or more allotypic amino acid residues, for the IgG1 subclass and the kappa isotype. Allotypic amino acid residues also include, but are not limited to, the constant region of the heavy chain of the IgG1, IgG2, and IgG3 subclasses as well as the constant region of the light chain of the kappa isotype as described by Jefferis et al., MAbs. 1:332-338 (2009).

In yet another aspect, the Fc region is modified to increase the ability of the antibody to mediate antibody dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC) and/or to increase the affinity of the antibody for an Fcγ receptor by modifying one or more amino acids. This approach is described in, e.g., the PCT Publication WO 00/42072 by Presta. Moreover, the binding sites on human IgG1 for FcγRl, FcγRII, FcγRIII and FcRn have been mapped and variants with improved binding have been described (see Shields et al., J. Biol. Chem. 276:6591-6604, 2001).

In still another aspect, the glycosylation of an antibody is modified. For example, an aglycosylated antibody can be made (i.e., the antibody lacks glycosylation). Glycosylation can be altered to, for example, increase the affinity of the antibody for “antigen.” Such carbohydrate modifications can be accomplished by, for example, altering one or more sites of glycosylation within the antibody sequence. For example, one or more amino acid substitutions can be made that result in elimination of one or more variable region framework glycosylation sites to thereby eliminate glycosylation at that site. Such aglycosylation may increase the affinity of the antibody for antigen. Such an approach is described in, e.g., U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,714,350 and 6,350,861 by Co et al.

Additionally or alternatively, an antibody can be made that has an altered type of glycosylation, such as a hypofucosylated antibody having reduced amounts of fucosyl residues or an antibody having increased bisecting GlcNac structures. Such altered glycosylation patterns have been demonstrated to increase the ADCC ability of antibodies. Such carbohydrate modifications can be accomplished by, for example, expressing the antibody in a host cell with altered glycosylation machinery. Cells with altered glycosylation machinery have been described in the art and can be used as host cells in which to express recombinant antibodies to thereby produce an antibody with altered glycosylation. For example, EP 1,176,195 by Hang et al. describes a cell line with a functionally disrupted FUT8 gene, which encodes a fucosyl transferase, such that antibodies expressed in such a cell line exhibit hypofucosylation. PCT Publication WO 03/035835 by Presta describes a variant CHO cell line, Lecl3 cells, with reduced ability to attach fucose to Asn(297)-linked carbohydrates, also resulting in hypofucosylation of antibodies expressed in that host cell (see also Shields et al., (2002) J. Biol. Chem. 277:26733-26740). PCT Publication WO 99/54342 by Umana et al. describes cell lines engineered to express glycoprotein-modifying glycosyl transferases (e.g., beta(1,4)-N acetylglucosaminyltransferase III (GnTIII)) such that antibodies expressed in the engineered cell lines exhibit increased bisecting GlcNac structures which results in increased ADCC activity of the antibodies (see also Umana et al., Nat. Biotech. 17:176-180, 1999).

In another aspect, the antibody is modified to increase its biological half-life. Various approaches are possible. For example, one or more of the following mutations can be introduced: T252L, T254S, and T256F, as described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,277,375 to Ward. Alternatively, to increase the biological half-life, the antibody can be altered within the CH1 or CL region to contain a salvage receptor binding epitope taken from two loops of a CH2 domain of an Fc region of an IgG, as described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,869,046 and 6,121,022 by Presta et al.

In order to minimize the ADCC activity of an antibody, specific mutations in the Fc region result in “Fc silent” antibodies that have minimal interaction with effector cells. In general, the “IgG Fc region” is used to define the C-terminal region of an immunoglobulin heavy chain, including native sequence Fc region and variant Fc regions. The human IgG heavy chain Fc region is generally defined as comprising the amino acid residue from position C226 or from P230 to the carboxyl-terminus of the IgG antibody. The numbering of residues in the Fc region is that of the EU index of Kabat. The C-terminal lysine (residue K447) of the Fc region may be removed, for example, during production or purification of the antibody.

Silenced effector functions can be obtained by mutation in the Fc region of the antibodies and have been described in the art: LALA and N297A (Strohl, W., Curr. Opin. Biotechnol. 2009, vol. 20(6):685-691); and D265A (Baudino et al., J. Immunol. 2008, 181:6664-69) see also Heusser et al., WO2012065950. Examples of silent Fc lgG1 antibodies are the LALA mutant comprising L234A and L235A mutation in the lgG1 Fc amino acid sequence. Another example of a silent lgG1 antibody is the DAPA (D265A, P329A) mutation (U.S. Pat. No. 6,737,056). Another silent lgG1 antibody comprises the N297A mutation, which results in aglycosylated/non-glycosylated antibodies.

Fc silent antibodies result in no or low ADCC activity, meaning that an Fc silent antibody exhibits an ADCC activity that is below 50% specific cell lysis, No ADCC activity means that the Fc silent antibody exhibits an ADCC activity (specific cell lysis) that is below 1%.

3. Production of the cKIT Antibodies

Anti-cKIT antibodies and antibody fragments (e.g., antigen binding fragments) thereof can be produced by any means known in the art, including but not limited to, recombinant expression, chemical synthesis, and enzymatic digestion of antibody tetramers, whereas full-length monoclonal antibodies can be obtained by, e.g., hybridoma or recombinant production. Recombinant expression can be from any appropriate host cells known in the art, for example, mammalian host cells, bacterial host cells, yeast host cells, insect host cells, etc.

The disclosure further provides polynucleotides encoding the antibodies described herein, e.g., polynucleotides encoding heavy or light chain variable regions or segments comprising the complementarity determining regions as described herein. In some aspects, the polynucleotide encoding the heavy chain variable regions has at least 85%, 89%, 90%, 91%, 92%, 93%, 94%, 95%, 96%, 97%, 98%, 99%, or 100% nucleic acid sequence identity with a polynucleotide selected from the group consisting of SEQ ID NOs: 30, 48, 66, 84, 102, 120 and 137. In some aspects, the polynucleotide encoding the light chain variable regions has at least 85%, 89%, 90%, 91%, 92%, 93%, 94%, 95%, 96%, 97%, 98%, 99%, or 100% nucleic acid sequence identity with a polynucleotide selected from the group consisting of SEQ ID NOs:39, 57, 75, 93, 111, 129 and 147.

In some aspects, the polynucleotide encoding the heavy chain has at least 85%, 89%, 90%, 91%, 92%, 93%, 94%, 95%, 96%, 97%, 98%, 99%, or 100% nucleic acid sequence identity with a polynucleotide of SEQ ID NO: 30, 48, 66, 84, 102, 120. In some aspects, the polynucleotide encoding the light chain has at least 85%, 89%, 90%, 91%, 92%, 93%, 94%, 95%, 96%, 97%, 98%, 99%, or 100% nucleic acid sequence identity with a polynucleotide of SEQ ID NO: 39, 57, 75, 93, 111, 129 and 147.

The polynucleotides of the present disclosure can encode only the variable region sequence of an anti-cKIT antibody. They can also encode both a variable region and a constant region of the antibody. Some of the polynucleotide sequences encode a polypeptide that comprises variable regions of both the heavy chain and the light chain of one of an exemplified anti-cKIT antibody. Some other polynucleotides encode two polypeptide segments that respectively are substantially identical to the variable regions of the heavy chain and the light chain of one of the mouse antibodies.

The polynucleotide sequences can be produced by de novo solid-phase DNA synthesis or by PCR mutagenesis of an existing sequence (e.g., sequences as described in the Examples below) encoding an anti-cKIT antibody or its binding fragment. Direct chemical synthesis of nucleic acids can be accomplished by methods known in the art, such as the phosphotriester method of Narang et al., Meth. Enzymol. 68:90, 1979; the phosphodiester method of Brown et al., Meth. Enzymol. 68:109, 1979; the diethylphosphoramidite method of Beaucage et al., Tetra. Lett., 22:1859, 1981; and the solid support method of U.S. Pat. No. 4,458,066. Introducing mutations to a polynucleotide sequence by PCR can be performed as described in, e.g., PCR Technology: Principles and Applications for DNA Amplification, H. A. Erlich (Ed.), Freeman Press, NY, NY, 1992; PCR Protocols: A Guide to Methods and Applications, Innis et al. (Ed.), Academic Press, San Diego, CA, 1990; Mattila et al., Nucleic Acids Res. 19:967, 1991; and Eckert et al., PCR Methods and Applications 1:17, 1991.

Also provided in the present disclosure are expression vectors and host cells for producing the anti-cKIT antibodies described above. Various expression vectors can be employed to express the polynucleotides encoding the anti-cKIT antibody chains or binding fragments. Both viral-based and nonviral expression vectors can be used to produce the antibodies in a mammalian host cell. Nonviral vectors and systems include plasmids, episomal vectors, typically with an expression cassette for expressing a protein or RNA, and human artificial chromosomes (see, e.g., Harrington et al., Nat Genet 15:345, 1997). For example, nonviral vectors useful for expression of the anti-cKIT polynucleotides and polypeptides in mammalian (e.g., human) cells include pThioHis A, B & C, pcDNA3.1/His, pEBVHis A, B & C (Invitrogen, San Diego, CA), MPSV vectors, and numerous other vectors known in the art for expressing other proteins. Useful viral vectors include vectors based on retroviruses, adenoviruses, adenoassociated viruses, herpes viruses, vectors based on SV40, papilloma virus, HBP Epstein Barr virus, vaccinia virus vectors and Semliki Forest virus (SFV). See, Brent et al., supra; Smith, Annu. Rev. Microbiol. 49:807, 1995; and Rosenfeld et al., Cell 68:143, 1992.

The choice of expression vector depends on the intended host cells in which the vector is to be expressed. Typically, the expression vectors contain a promoter and other regulatory sequences (e.g., enhancers) that are operably linked to the polynucleotides encoding an anti-cKIT antibody chain or fragment. In some aspects, an inducible promoter is employed to prevent expression of inserted sequences except under inducing conditions. Inducible promoters include, e.g., arabinose, lacZ, metallothionein promoter or a heat shock promoter. Cultures of transformed organisms can be expanded under noninducing conditions without biasing the population for coding sequences whose expression products are better tolerated by the host cells. In addition to promoters, other regulatory elements may also be required or desired for efficient expression of an anti-cKIT antibody chain or fragment. These elements typically include an ATG initiation codon and adjacent ribosome binding site or other sequences. In addition, the efficiency of expression may be enhanced by the inclusion of enhancers appropriate to the cell system in use (see, e.g., Scharf et al., Results Probl. Cell Differ. 20:125, 1994; and Bittner et al., Meth. Enzymol., 153:516, 1987). For example, the SV40 enhancer or CMV enhancer may be used to increase expression in mammalian host cells.

The expression vectors may also provide a secretion signal sequence position to form a fusion protein with polypeptides encoded by inserted anti-cKIT antibody sequences. More often, the inserted anti-cKIT antibody sequences are linked to a signal sequences before inclusion in the vector. Vectors to be used to receive sequences encoding anti-cKIT antibody light and heavy chain variable domains sometimes also encode constant regions or parts thereof. Such vectors allow expression of the variable regions as fusion proteins with the constant regions thereby leading to production of intact antibodies or fragments thereof. Typically, such constant regions are human.

The host cells for harboring and expressing the anti-cKIT antibody chains can be either prokaryotic or eukaryotic. E. coli is one prokaryotic host useful for cloning and expressing the polynucleotides of the present disclosure. Other microbial hosts suitable for use include bacilli, such as Bacillus subtilis, and other enterobacteriaceae, such as Salmonella, Serratia, and various Pseudomonas species. In these prokaryotic hosts, one can also make expression vectors, which typically contain expression control sequences compatible with the host cell (e.g., an origin of replication). In addition, any number of a variety of well-known promoters will be present, such as the lactose promoter system, a tryptophan (trp) promoter system, a beta-lactamase promoter system, or a promoter system from phage lambda. The promoters typically control expression, optionally with an operator sequence, and have ribosome binding site sequences and the like, for initiating and completing transcription and translation. Other microbes, such as yeast, can also be employed to express anti-cKIT polypeptides. Insect cells in combination with baculovirus vectors can also be used.

In other aspects, mammalian host cells are used to express and produce the anti-cKIT polypeptides of the present disclosure. For example, they can be either a hybridoma cell line expressing endogenous immunoglobulin genes (e.g., the myeloma hybridoma clones as described in the Examples) or a mammalian cell line harboring an exogenous expression vector (e.g., the SP2/0 myeloma cells exemplified below). These include any normal mortal or normal or abnormal immortal animal or human cell. For example, a number of suitable host cell lines capable of secreting intact immunoglobulins have been developed, including the CHO cell lines, various COS cell lines, HeLa cells, myeloma cell lines, transformed B-cells and hybridomas. The use of mammalian tissue cell culture to express polypeptides is discussed generally in, e.g., Winnacker, From Genes to Clones, VCH Publishers, N.Y., N.Y., 1987. Expression vectors for mammalian host cells can include expression control sequences, such as an origin of replication, a promoter, and an enhancer (see, e.g., Queen et al., Immunol. Rev. 89:49-68, 1986), and necessary processing information sites, such as ribosome binding sites, RNA splice sites, polyadenylation sites, and transcriptional terminator sequences. These expression vectors usually contain promoters derived from mammalian genes or from mammalian viruses. Suitable promoters may be constitutive, cell type-specific, stage-specific, and/or modulatable or regulatable. Useful promoters include, but are not limited to, the metallothionein promoter, the constitutive adenovirus major late promoter, the dexamethasone-inducible MMTV promoter, the SV40 promoter, the MRP polIII promoter, the constitutive MPSV promoter, the tetracycline-inducible CMV promoter (such as the human immediate-early CMV promoter), the constitutive CMV promoter, and promoter-enhancer combinations known in the art.

Methods for introducing expression vectors containing the polynucleotide sequences of interest vary depending on the type of cellular host. For example, calcium chloride transfection is commonly utilized for prokaryotic cells, whereas calcium phosphate treatment or electroporation may be used for other cellular hosts (see generally Sambrook et al., supra). Other methods include, e.g., electroporation, calcium phosphate treatment, liposome-mediated transformation, injection and microinjection, ballistic methods, virosomes, immunoliposomes, polycation:nucleic acid conjugates, naked DNA, artificial virions, fusion to the herpes virus structural protein VP22 (Elliot and O'Hare, Cell 88:223, 1997), agent-enhanced uptake of DNA, and ex vivo transduction. For long-term, high-yield production of recombinant proteins, stable expression will often be desired. For example, cell lines which stably express anti-cKIT antibody chains or binding fragments can be prepared using expression vectors which contain viral origins of replication or endogenous expression elements and a selectable marker gene. Following introduction of the vector, cells may be allowed to grow for 1-2 days in an enriched media before they are switched to selective media. The purpose of the selectable marker is to confer resistance to selection, and its presence allows growth of cells which successfully express the introduced sequences in selective media. Resistant, stably transfected cells can be proliferated using tissue culture techniques appropriate to the cell type.

Therapeutic and Diagnostic Uses

The antibodies, antibody fragments (e.g., antigen binding fragments), and antibody drug conjugates of the present disclosure are useful in a variety of applications including, but not limited to, treatment of cancer, such as solid cancers. In certain aspects, the antibodies, antibody fragments (e.g., antigen binding fragments), and antibody drug conjugates are useful for inhibiting tumor growth, inducing differentiation, reducing tumor volume, and/or reducing the tumorigenicity of a tumor. The methods of use can be in vitro, ex vivo, or in vivo methods.

In one aspect, the antibodies, antibody fragments (e.g., antigen binding fragments), and antibody drug conjugates are useful for detecting the presence of cKIT in a biological sample. The term “detecting” as used herein encompasses quantitative or qualitative detection. In certain aspects, a biological sample comprises a cell or tissue. In certain aspects, such tissues include normal and/or cancerous tissues that express cKIT at higher levels relative to other tissues.

In one aspect, the present disclosure provides a method of detecting the presence of cKIT in a biological sample. In certain aspects, the method comprises contacting the biological sample with an anti-c KIT antibody under conditions permissive for binding of the antibody to the antigen, and detecting whether a complex is formed between the antibody and the antigen.

Also included is a method of diagnosing a disorder associated with increased expression of cKIT. In certain aspects, the method comprises contacting a test cell with an anti-cKIT antibody; determining the level of expression (either quantitatively or qualitatively) of cKIT on the test cell by detecting binding of the anti-cKIT antibody to the cKIT antigen; and comparing the level of expression of cKIT in the test cell with the level of expression of cKIT in a control cell (e.g., a normal cell of the same tissue origin as the test cell or a cell that expresses cKIT at levels comparable to such a normal cell), wherein a higher level of expression of cKIT on the test cell as compared to the control cell indicates the presence of a disorder associated with increased expression of cKIT. In certain aspects, the test cell is obtained from an individual suspected of having a disorder associated with increased expression of cKIT. In certain aspects, the disorder is a cell proliferative disorder, such as a cancer or a tumor.

In certain aspects, a method of diagnosis or detection, such as those described above, comprises detecting binding of an anti-cKIT antibody to cKIT expressed on the surface of a cell or in a membrane preparation obtained from a cell expressing cKIT on its surface. An exemplary assay for detecting binding of an anti-cKIT antibody to cKIT expressed on the surface of a cell is a “FACS” assay.

Certain other methods can be used to detect binding of anti-cKIT antibodies to cKIT. Such methods include, but are not limited to, antigen-binding assays that are well known in the art, such as western blots, radioimmunoassays, ELISA (enzyme linked immunosorbent assay), “sandwich” immunoassays, immunoprecipitation assays, fluorescent immunoassays, protein A immunoassays, and immunohistochemistry (IHC).

In certain aspects, anti-cKIT antibodies are labeled. Labels include, but are not limited to, labels or moieties that are detected directly (such as fluorescent, chromophoric, electron-dense, chemiluminescent, and radioactive labels), as well as moieties, such as enzymes or ligands, that are detected indirectly, e.g., through an enzymatic reaction or molecular interaction.

In certain aspects, anti-cKIT antibodies are immobilized on an insoluble matrix. Immobilization entails separating the anti-cKIT antibody from any cKIT proteins that remains free in solution. This conventionally is accomplished by either insolubilizing the anti-cKIT antibody before the assay procedure, as by adsorption to a water-insoluble matrix or surface (Bennich et al, U.S. Pat. No. 3,720,760), or by covalent coupling (for example, using glutaraldehyde cross-linking), or by insolubilizing the anti-cKIT antibody after formation of a complex between the anti-cKIT antibody and cKIT protein, e.g., by immunoprecipitation.

Any of the above aspects of diagnosis or detection can be carried out using an immunoconjugate of the present disclosure in place of or in addition to an anti-cKIT antibody.

In one aspect, the disclosure provides for a method of treating, preventing or ameliorating a disease comprising administering the antibodies, antibody fragments (e.g., antigen binding fragments), and antibody drug conjugates to a patient, thereby treating the disease. In certain aspects, the disease treated with the antibodies, antibody fragments (e.g., antigen binding fragments), and antibody drug conjugates is a cancer. Examples of diseases which can be treated and/or prevented include, but are not limited to, gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST), small cell lung cancer (SCLC), acute myeloid leukemia (AML), melanoma, mast cell leukemia (MCL), mastocytosis, neurofibromatosis, breast cancer, non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), and pancreatic cancer. In certain aspects, the cancer is characterized by cKIT expressing cells to which the antibodies, antibody fragments (e.g., antigen binding fragments), and antibody drug conjugates can specifically bind.

The present disclosure provides for methods of treating cancer comprising administering a therapeutically effective amount of the antibodies, antibody fragments (e.g., antigen binding fragments), or antibody drug conjugates. In certain aspects, the cancer is a solid cancer. In certain aspects, the subject is a human.

In certain aspects, the method of inhibiting tumor growth comprises administering to a subject a therapeutically effective amount of the antibodies, antibody fragments (e.g., antigen binding fragments), or antibody drug conjugates. In certain aspects, the subject is a human. In certain aspects, the subject has a tumor or has had a tumor removed.

In certain aspects, the tumor expresses the cKIT to which the anti-cKIT antibody binds. In certain aspects, the tumor overexpresses the human cKIT.

For the treatment of the disease, the appropriate dosage of the antibodies, antibody fragments (e.g., antigen binding fragments), or antibody drug conjugates depend on various factors, such as the type of disease to be treated, the severity and course of the disease, the responsiveness of the disease, previous therapy, patient's clinical history, and so on. The antibody or agent can be administered one time or over a series of treatments lasting from several days to several months, or until a cure is effected or a diminution of the disease state is achieved (e.g., reduction in tumor size). Optimal dosing schedules can be calculated from measurements of drug accumulation in the body of the patient and will vary depending on the relative potency of an individual antibody, antibody fragment (e.g., antigen binding fragment), or antibody drug conjugates. In certain aspects, dosage is from 0.01 mg to 10 mg (e.g., 0.01 mg, 0.05 mg, 0.1 mg, 0.5 mg, 1 mg, 2 mg, 3 mg, 4 mg, 5 mg, 7 mg, 8 mg, 9 mg, or 10 mg) per kg of body weight, and can be given once or more daily, weekly, monthly or yearly. In certain aspects, the antibody, antibody fragment (e.g., antigen binding fragment), or antibody drug conjugate of the present disclosure is given once every two weeks or once every three weeks. The treating physician can estimate repetition rates for dosing based on measured residence times and concentrations of the drug in bodily fluids or tissues.

Combination Therapy

In certain instances, an antibody, antibody fragment (e.g., antigen binding fragment), or antibody drug conjugate of the present disclosure is combined with other therapeutic agents, such as other anti-cancer agents, anti-allergic agents, anti-nausea agents (or anti-emetics), pain relievers, cytoprotective agents, and combinations thereof.

General chemotherapeutic agents considered for use in combination therapies include anastrozole (Arimidex®), bicalutamide (Casodex®), bleomycin sulfate (Blenoxane®), busulfan (Myleran®), busulfan injection (Busulfex), capecitabine (Xeloda), N4-pentoxycarbonyl-5-deoxy-5-fluorocytidine, carboplatin (Paraplatin®), carmustine (BiCNU®), chlorambucil (Leukeran®), cisplatin (Platinol®), cladribine (Leustatin®), cyclophosphamide (Cytoxan® or Neosar®), cytarabine, cytosine arabinoside (Cytosar-U®), cytarabine liposome injection (DepoCyt®), dacarbazine (DTIC-Dome®), dactinomycin (Actinomycin D, Cosmegan), daunorubicin hydrochloride (Cerubidine®), daunorubicin citrate liposome injection (DaunoXome®), dexamethasone, docetaxel (Taxotere®), doxorubicin hydrochloride (Adriamycin®, Rubex®), etoposide (Vepesid), fludarabine phosphate (Fludara®), 5-fluorouracil (Adrucil Efudex®), flutamide (Eulexin®), tezacitibine, Gemcitabine (difluorodeoxycitidine), hydroxyurea (Hydrea®), Idarubicin (Idamycin®), ifosfamide (IFEX®), irinotecan)(Camptosar®), L-asparaginase (ELSPAR®), leucovorin calcium, melphalan (Alkeran®), 6-mercaptopurine (Purinethol®), methotrexate (Folex®), mitoxantrone (Novantrone®), mylotarg, paclitaxel (Taxol®), phoenix (Yttrium90/MX-DTPA), pentostatin, polifeprosan 20 with carmustine implant (Gliadel®), tamoxifen citrate (Nolvadex®), teniposide (Vumon®), 6-thioguanine, thiotepa, tirapazamine (Tirazone®), topotecan hydrochloride for injection (Hycamptin®), vinblastine (Velban®), vincristine (Oncovin®), and vinorelbine (Navelbine®).

In one aspect, an antibody, antibody fragment (e.g., antigen binding fragment), or antibody drug conjugate of the present disclosure is combined in a pharmaceutical combination formulation, or dosing regimen as combination therapy, with a second compound having anti-cancer properties. The second compound of the pharmaceutical combination formulation or dosing regimen can have complementary activities to the antibody or immunoconjugate of the combination such that they do not adversely affect each other. For example, an antibody, antibody fragment (e.g., antigen binding fragment), or antibody drug conjugate of the present disclosure can be administered in combination with, but not limited to, a chemotherapeutic agent, a tyrosine kinase inhibitor, for example, Imatinib, and other cKIT pathway inhibitors.

The term “pharmaceutical combination” as used herein refers to either a fixed combination in one dosage unit form, or non-fixed combination or a kit of parts for the combined administration where two or more therapeutic agents may be administered independently at the same time or separately within time intervals, especially where these time intervals allow that the combination partners show a cooperative, e.g. synergistic effect.

The term “combination therapy” refers to the administration of two or more therapeutic agents to treat a therapeutic condition or disorder described in the present disclosure. Such administration encompasses co-administration of these therapeutic agents in a substantially simultaneous manner, such as in a single capsule having a fixed ratio of active ingredients. Alternatively, such administration encompasses co-administration in multiple, or in separate containers (e.g., capsules, powders, and liquids) for each active ingredient. Powders and/or liquids may be reconstituted or diluted to a desired dose prior to administration. In addition, such administration also encompasses use of each type of therapeutic agent in a sequential manner, either at approximately the same time or at different times. In either case, the treatment regimen will provide beneficial effects of the drug combination in treating the conditions or disorders described herein.

The combination therapy can provide “synergy” and prove “synergistic”, i.e., the effect achieved when the active ingredients used together is greater than the sum of the effects that results from using the compounds separately. A synergistic effect can be attained when the active ingredients are: (1) co-formulated and administered or delivered simultaneously in a combined, unit dosage formulation; (2) delivered by alternation or in parallel as separate formulations; or (3) by some other regimen. When delivered in alternation therapy, a synergistic effect can be attained when the compounds are administered or delivered sequentially, e.g., by different injections in separate syringes. In general, during alternation therapy, an effective dosage of each active ingredient is administered sequentially, i.e., serially, whereas in combination therapy, effective dosages of two or more active ingredients are administered together.

In one aspect, the present disclosure provides a method of treating cancer by administering to a subject in need thereof an antibody drug conjugate in combination with one or more tyrosine kinase inhibitors, including but not limited to, EGFR inhibitors, Her2 inhibitors, Her3 inhibitors, IGFR inhibitors, and Met inhibitors.

For example, tyrosine kinase inhibitors include but are not limited to, Erlotinib hydrochloride (Tarceva®); Linifanib (N-[4-(3-amino-1H-indazol-4-yl)phenyl]-N′-(2-fluoro-5-methylphenyflurea, also known as ABT 869, available from Genentech); Sunitinib malate (Sutent®); Bosutinib (4-[(2,4-dichloro-5-methoxyphenyl)amino]-6-methoxy-7-[3-(4-methylpiperazin-1-yl)propoxy]quinoline-3-carbonitrile, also known as SKI-606, and described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,780,996); Dasatinib (Sprycel®); Pazopanib (Votrient®); Sorafenib (Nexavar®); Zactima (ZD6474); nilotinib (Tasigna®); Regorafenib (Stivarga®) and Imatinib or Imatinib mesylate (Gilvec® and Gleevec®).

Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) inhibitors include but are not limited to, Erlotinib hydrochloride (Tarceva®), Gefitnib (Iressa®); N-[4-[(3-Chloro-4-fluorophenyl)amino]-7-[[(3″S″)-tetrahydro-3-furanyl]oxy]-6-quinazolinyl]-4(dimethylamino)-2-butenamide, Tovok®); Vandetanib (Caprelsa®); Lapatinib (Tykerb®); (3R,4R)-4-Amino-1-((4-((3-methoxyphenyl)amino)pyrrolo[2,1-f][1,2,4]triazin-5-yl)methyl)piperidin-3-ol (BMS690514); Canertinib dihydrochloride (CI-1033); 6-[4-[(4-Ethyl-1-piperazinyl)methyl]phenyl]-N-[(1R)-1-phenylethyl]-7H-Pyrrolo[2,3-d]pyrimidin-4-amine (AEE788, CAS 497839-62-0); Mubritinib (TAK165); Pelitinib (EKB569); Afatinib (BIBW2992); Neratinib (HKI-272); N-[4-[[1-[(3-Fluorophenyl)methyl]-1H-indazol-5-yl]amino]-5-methylpyrrolo[2,1-f][1,2,4]triazin-6-yl]-carbamic acid, (3S)-3-morpholinylmethyl ester (BMS599626); N-(3,4-Dichloro-2-fluorophenyl)-6-methoxy-7-[[(3aα,5β,6aα)-octahydro-2-methylcyclopenta[c]pyrrol-5-yl]methoxy]-4-quinazolinamine (XL647, CAS 781613-23-8); and 4-[4-[[(1R)-1-Phenylethyl]amino]-7H-pyrrolo[2,3-d]pyrimidin-6-yl]-phenol (PKI166, CAS 187724-61-4).

EGFR antibodies include but are not limited to, Cetuximab (Erbitux®); Panitumumab (Vectibix®); Matuzumab (EMD-72000); Nimotuzumab (hR3); Zalutumumab; TheraClM h-R3; MDX0447 (CAS 339151-96-1); and ch806 (mAb-806, CAS 946414-09-1).

Human Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor 2 (HER2 receptor) (also known as Neu, ErbB-2, CD340, or p185) inhibitors include but are not limited to, Trastuzumab (Herceptin®); Pertuzumab (Omnitarg®); Neratinib (HKI-272, (2E)-N-[4-[[3-chloro-4-[(pyridin-2-yl)methoxy]phenyl]amino]-3-cyano-7-ethoxyquinolin-6-yl]-4-(dimethylamino)but-2-enamide, and described PCT Publication No. WO 05/028443); Lapatinib or Lapatinib ditosylate (Tykerb®); (3R,4R)-4-amino-1-((4-((3-methoxyphenyl)amino)pyrrolo[2,1-f][1,2,4]triazin-5-yl)methyl)piperidin-3-ol (BMS690514); (2E)-N-[4-[(3-Chloro-4-fluorophenyl)amino]-7-[[(3S)-tetrahydro-3-furanyl]oxy]-6-quinazolinyl]-4-(dimethylamino)-2-butenamide (BIBW-2992, CAS 850140-72-6); N-[4-[[1-[(3-Fluorophenyl)methyl]-1H-indazol-5-yl]amino]-5-methylpyrrolo[2,1-f][1,2,4]triazin-6-yl]-carbamic acid, (3S)-3-morpholinylmethyl ester (BMS 599626, CAS 714971-09-2); Canertinib dihydrochloride (PD183805 or CI-1033); and N-(3,4-Dichloro-2-fluorophenyl)-6-methoxy-7-[[(3aα,5β,6aα)-octahydro-2-methylcyclopenta[c]pyrrol-5-yl]methoxy]-4-quinazolinamine (XL647, CAS 781613-23-8).

HER3 inhibitors include but are not limited to, LJM716, MM-121, AMG-888, RG7116, REGN-1400, AV-203, MP-RM-1, MM-111, and MEHD-7945A.

MET inhibitors include but are not limited to, Cabozantinib (XL184, CAS 849217-68-1); Foretinib (GSK1363089, formerly XL880, CAS 849217-64-7); Tivantinib (ARQ197, CAS 1000873-98-2); 1-(2-Hydroxy-2-methylpropyl)-N-(5-(7-methoxyquinolin-4-yloxy)pyridin-2-yl)-5-methyl-3-oxo-2-phenyl-2,3-dihydro-1H-pyrazole-4-carboxamide (AMG 458); Cryzotinib (Xalkori®, PF-02341066); (3Z)-5-(2,3-Dihydro-1H-indol-1-ylsulfonyl)-3-({3,5-dimethyl-4-[(4-methylpiperazin-1-yl)carbonyl]-1H-pyrrol-2-yl}methylene)-1,3-dihydro-2H-indol-2-one (SU11271); (3Z)—N-(3-Chlorophenyl)-3-({3,5-dimethyl-4-[(4-methylpiperazin-1-yl)carbonyl]-1H-pyrrol-2-yl}methylene)-N-methyl-2-oxoindoline-5-sulfonamide (SU11274); (3Z)—N-(3-Chlorophenyl)-3-{[3,5-dimethyl-4-(3-morpholin-4-ylpropyl)-1H-pyrrol-2-yl]methylene}-N-methyl-2-oxoindoline-5-sulfonamide (SU11606); 6-[Difluoro[6-(1-methyl-1H-pyrazol-4-yl)-1,2,4-triazolo[4,3-b]pyridazin-3-yl]methyl]-quinoline (JNJ38877605, CAS 943540-75-8); 2-[4-[1-(Quinolin-6-ylmethyl)-1H-[1,2,3]triazolo[4,5-b]pyrazin-6-yl]-1H-pyrazol-1-yl]ethanol (PF04217903, CAS 956905-27-4); N-((2R)-1,4-Dioxan-2-ylmethyl)-N-methyl-N′-[3-(1-methyl-1H-pyrazol-4-yl)-5-oxo-5H-benzo[4,5]cyclohepta[1,2-b]pyridin-7-yl]sulfamide (MK2461, CAS 917879-39-1); 6-[[6-(1-Methyl-1H-pyrazol-4-yl)-1,2,4-triazolo[4,3-b]pyridazin-3-yl]thio]-quinoline (SGX523, CAS 1022150-57-7); and (3Z)-5-[[(2,6-Dichlorophenyl)methyl]sulfonyl]-3-[[3,5-dimethyl-4-[[(2R)-2-(1-pyrrolidinylmethyl)-1-pyrrolidinyl]carbonyl]-1H-pyrrol-2-yl]methylene]-1,3-dihydro-2H-indol-2-one (PHA665752, CAS 477575-56-7).

IGF1R inhibitors include but are not limited to, BMS-754807, XL-228, OSI-906, GSK0904529A, A-928605, AXL1717, KW-2450, MK0646, AMG479, IMCA12, MEDI-573, and BI836845. See e.g., Yee, JNCI, 104; 975 (2012) for review.

In another aspect, the present disclosure provides a method of treating cancer by administering to a subject in need thereof an antibody drug conjugate in combination with one or more FGF downstream signaling pathway inhibitors, including but not limited to, MEK inhibitors, Braf inhibitors, PI3K/Akt inhibitors, SHP2 inhibitors, and also mTor inhibitors.

For example, mitogen-activated protein kinase (MEK) inhibitors include but are not limited to, XL-518 (also known as GDC-0973, Cas No. 1029872-29-4, available from ACC Corp.); 2-[(2-Chloro-4-iodophenyl)amino]-N-(cyclopropylmethoxy)-3,4-difluoro-benzamide (also known as CI-1040 or PD184352 and described in PCT Publication No. W2000035436); N-[(2R)-2,3-Dihydroxypropoxy]-3,4-difluoro-2-[(2-fluoro-4-iodophenyl)amino]-benzamide (also known as PD0325901 and described in PCT Publication No. WO2002006213); 2,3-Bis[amino[(2-aminophenyl)thio]methylene]-butanedinitrile (also known as U0126 and described in U.S. Pat. No. 2,779,780); N-[3,4-Difluoro-2-[(2-fluoro-4-iodophenyl)amino]-6-methoxyphenyl]-1-[(2R)-2,3-dihydroxypropyl]-cyclopropanesulfonamide (also known as RDEA119 or BAY869766 and described in PCT Publication No. W2007014011); (3S,4R,5Z,8S,9S,11E)-14-(Ethylamino)-8,9,16-trihydroxy-3,4-dimethyl-3,4,9, 19-tetrahydro-1H-2-benzoxacyclotetradecine-1,7(8H)-dione] (also known as E6201 and described in PCT Publication No. WO2003076424); 2′-Amino-3′-methoxyflavone (also known as PD98059 available from Biaffin GmbH & Co., KG, Germany); Vemurafenib (PLX-4032, CAS 918504-65-1); (R)-3-(2,3-Dihydroxypropyl)-6-fluoro-5-(2-fluoro-4-iodophenylamino)-8-methylpyrido[2,3-d]pyrimidine-4,7(3H,8H)-dione (TAK-733, CAS 1035555-63-5); Pimasertib (AS-703026, CAS 1204531-26-9); and Trametinib dimethyl sulfoxide (GSK-1120212, CAS 1204531-25-80).

Phosphoinositide 3-kinase (P3K) inhibitors include but are not limited to, 4-[2-(1H-Indazol-4-yl)-6-[[4-(methylsulfonyl)piperazin-1-yl]methyl]thieno[3,2-d]pyrimidin-4-yl]morpholine (also known as GDC 0941 and described in PCT Publication Nos. WO 09/036082 and WO 09/055730); 2-Methyl-2-[4-[3-methyl-2-oxo-8-(quinolin-3-yl)-2,3-dihydroimidazo[4,5-c]quinolin-1-yl]phenyl]propionitrile (also known as BEZ 235 or NVP-BEZ 235, and described in PCT Publication No. WO 06/122806); 4-(trifluoromethyl)-5-(2,6-dimorpholinopyrimidin-4-yl)pyridin-2-amine (also known as BKM120 or NVP-BKM120, and described in PCT Publication No. WO2007/084786); Tozasertib (VX680 or MK-0457, CAS 639089-54-6); (5Z)-5-[[4-(4-Pyridinyl)-6-quinolinyl]methylene]-2,4-thiazolidinedione (GSK1059615, CAS 958852-01-2); (1E,4S,4aR,5R,6aS,9aR)-5-(Acetyloxy)-1-[(di-2-propenylamino)methylene]-4,4a,5,6,6a,8,9,9a-octahydro-11-hydroxy-4-(methoxymethyl)-4a,6a-dimethyl-cyclopenta[5,6]naphtho[1,2-c]pyran-2,7,10(1H)-trione (PX866, CAS 502632-66-8); and 8-Phenyl-2-(morpholin-4-yl)-chromen-4-one (LY294002, CAS 154447-36-6).

mTor inhibitors include but are not limited to, Temsirolimus (Torisel®); Ridaforolimus (formally known as deferolimus, (1R,2R,4S)-4-[(2R)-2 [(1R,9S,12S,15R,16E,18R,19R,21R, 23S,24E,26E,28Z,30S,32S,35R)-1,18-dihydroxy-19,30-dimethoxy-15,17,21,23,29,35-hexamethyl-2,3,10,14,20-pentaoxo-11,36-dioxa-4-azatricyclo[30.3.1.0^(4,9)] hexatriaconta-16,24,26,28-tetraen-12-yl]propyl]-2-methoxycyclohexyl dimethylphosphinate, also known as AP23573 and MK8669, and described in PCT Publication No. WO 03/064383); Everolimus (Afinitor® or RAD001); Rapamycin (AY22989, Sirolimus®); Simapimod (CAS 164301-51-3); (5-{2,4-Bis[(3S)-3-methylmorpholin-4-yl]pyrido[2,3-d]pyrimidin-7-yl}-2-methoxyphenyl)methanol (AZD8055); 2-Amino-8-[trans-4-(2-hydroxyethoxy)cyclohexyl]-6-(6-methoxy-3-pyridinyl)-4-methyl-pyrido[2,3-d]pyrimidin-7(8H)-one (PF04691502, CAS 1013101-36-4); and N²-[1,4-dioxo-4-[[4-(4-oxo-8-phenyl-4H-1-benzopyran-2-yl)morpholinium-4-yl]methoxy]butyl]-L-arginylglycyl-L-α-aspartylL-serine-, inner salt (SF1126, CAS 936487-67-1).

In yet another aspect, the present disclosure provides a method of treating cancer by administering to a subject in need thereof an antibody drug conjugate in combination with one or more pro-apoptotics, including but not limited to, IAP inhibitors, Bcl2 inhibitors, MCI1 inhibitors, Trail agents, Chk inhibitors.

For examples, IAP inhibitors include but are not limited to, NVP-LCL161, GDC-0917, AEG-35156, AT406, and TL32711. Other examples of IAP inhibitors include but are not limited to those disclosed in WO04/005284, WO 04/007529, WO05/097791, WO 05/069894, WO 05/069888, WO 05/094818, US2006/0014700, US2006/0025347, WO 06/069063, WO 06/010118, WO 06/017295, and WO08/134679, all of which are incorporated herein by reference.

BCL-2 inhibitors include but are not limited to, 4-[4-[[2-(4-Chlorophenyl)-5,5-dimethyl-1-cyclohexen-1-yl]methyl]-1-piperazinyl]-N-[[4-[[(1R)-3-(4-morpholinyl)-1-[(phenylthio)methyl]propyl]amino]-3-[(trifluoromethyl)sulfonyl]phenyl]sulfonyl]benzamide (also known as ABT-263 and described in PCT Publication No. WO 09/155386); Tetrocarcin A; Antimycin; Gossypol ((−)BL-193); Obatoclax; Ethyl-2-amino-6-cyclopentyl-4-(1-cyano-2-ethoxy-2-oxoethyl)-4Hchromone-3-carboxylate (HA14-1); Oblimersen (G3139, Genasense®); Bak BH3 peptide; (−)-Gossypol acetic acid (AT-101); 4-[4-[(4′-Chloro[1,1′-biphenyl]-2-yl)methyl]-1-piperazinyl]-N-[[4-[[(1R)-3-(dimethylamino)-1-[(phenylthio)methyl]propyl]amino]-3-nitrophenyl]sulfonyl]-benzamide (ABT-737, CAS 852808-04-9); and Navitoclax (ABT-263, CAS 923564-51-6).

Proapoptotic receptor agonists (PARAs) including DR4 (TRAILR1) and DR5 (TRAILR2), including but are not limited to, Dulanermin (AMG-951, RhApo2L/TRAIL); Mapatumumab (HRS-ETR1, CAS 658052-09-6); Lexatumumab (HGS-ETR2, CAS 845816-02-6); Apomab (Apomab®); Conatumumab (AMG655, CAS 896731-82-1); and Tigatuzumab (CS1008, CAS 946415-34-5, available from Daiichi Sankyo).

Checkpoint Kinase (CHK) inhibitors include but are not limited to, 7-Hydroxystaurosporine (UCN-01); 6-Bromo-3-(1-methyl-1H-pyrazol-4-yl)-5-(3R)-3-piperidinyl-pyrazolo[1,5-a]pyrimidin-7-amine (SCH900776, CAS 891494-63-6); 5-(3-Fluorophenyl)-3-ureidothiophene-2-carboxylic acid N—[(S)-piperidin-3-yl]amide (AZD7762, CAS 860352-01-8); 4-[((3S)-1-Azabicyclo[2.2.2]oct-3-yl)amino]-3-(1H-benzimidazol-2-yl)-6-chloroquinolin-2(1H)-one (CHIR 124, CAS 405168-58-3); 7-Aminodactinomycin (7-AAD), Isogranulatimide, debromohymenialdisine; N-[5-Bromo-4-methyl-2-[(2S)-2-morpholinylmethoxy]-phenyl]-N′-(5-methyl-2-pyrazinyl)urea (LY2603618, CAS 911222-45-2); Sulforaphane (CAS 4478-93-7, 4-Methylsulfinylbutyl isothiocyanate); 9,10,11,12-Tetrahydro-9,12-epoxy-1H-diindolo[1,2,3-fg:3′,2′,1′-kl]pyrrolo[3,4-i][1,6]benzodiazocine-1,3(2H)-dione (SB-218078, CAS 135897-06-2); and TAT-S216A (Sha et al., Mol. Cancer. Ther 2007; 6(1):147-153), and CBP501.

In one aspect, the present disclosure provides a method of treating cancer by administering to a subject in need thereof an antibody drug conjugate in combination with one or more FGFR inhibitors. For example, FGFR inhibitors include but are not limited to, Brivanib alaninate (BMS-582664, (S)-((R)-1-(4-(4-Fluoro-2-methyl-1H-indol-5-yloxy)-5-methylpyrrolo[2,1-f][1,2,4]triazin-6-yloxy)propan-2-yl)2-aminopropanoate); Vargatef (BIBF1120, CAS 928326-83-4); Dovitinib dilactic acid (TKI258, CAS 852433-84-2); 3-(2,6-Dichloro-3,5-dimethoxy-phenyl)-1-{6-[4-(4-ethyl-piperazin-1-yl)-phenylamino]-pyrimidin-4-yl}-1-methyl-urea (BGJ398, CAS 872511-34-7); Danusertib (PHA-739358); and (PD173074, CAS 219580-11-7). In a specific aspect, the present disclosure provides a method of treating cancer by administering to a subject in need thereof an antibody drug conjugate in combination with an FGFR2 inhibitor, such as 3-(2,6-dichloro-3,5-dimethoxyphenyl)-1-(6((4-(4-ethylpiperazin-1-yl)phenyl)amino)pyrimidin-4-yl)-1-methylurea (also known as BGJ-398); or 4-amino-5-fluoro-3-(5-(4-methylpiperazin1-yl)-1H-benzo[d]imidazole-2-yl)quinolin-2(1H)-one (also known as dovitinib or TKI-258). AZD4547 (Gavine et al., 2012, Cancer Research 72, 2045-56, N-[5-[2-(3,5-Dimethoxyphenyl)ethyl]-2H-pyrazol-3-yl]-4-(3R,5S)-diemthylpiperazin-1-yl)benzamide), Ponatinib (AP24534; Gozgit et al., 2012, Mol Cancer Ther., 11; 690-99; 3-[2-(imidazo[1,2-b]pyridazin-3-yl)ethynyl]-4-methyl-N-{4-[(4-methylpiperazin-1-yl)methyl]-3-(trifluoromethyl)phenyl}benzamide, CAS 943319-70-8)

Pharmaceutical Compositions

To prepare pharmaceutical or sterile compositions including immunoconjugates, the immunoconjugates of the present disclosure are mixed with a pharmaceutically acceptable carrier or excipient. The compositions can additionally contain one or more other therapeutic agents that are suitable for treating or preventing cancer gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST), small cell lung cancer (SCLC), acute myeloid leukemia (AML), melanoma, mast cell leukemia (MCL), mastocytosis, neurofibromatosis, breast cancer, non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and pancreatic cancer.

Formulations of therapeutic and diagnostic agents can be prepared by mixing with physiologically acceptable carriers, excipients, or stabilizers in the form of, e.g., lyophilized powders, slurries, aqueous solutions, lotions, or suspensions (see, e.g., Hardman et al., Goodman and Gilman's The Pharmacological Basis of Therapeutics, McGraw-Hill, New York, N.Y., 2001; Gennaro, Remington: The Science and Practice of Pharmacy, Lippincott, Williams, and Wilkins, New York, N.Y., 2000; Avis, et al. (eds.), Pharmaceutical Dosage Forms: Parenteral Medications, Marcel Dekker, NY, 1993; Lieberman, et al. (eds.), Pharmaceutical Dosage Forms: Tablets, Marcel Dekker, NY, 1990; Lieberman, et al. (eds.) Pharmaceutical Dosage Forms: Disperse Systems, Marcel Dekker, NY, 1990; Weiner and Kotkoskie, Excipient Toxicity and Safety, Marcel Dekker, Inc., New York, N.Y., 2000).

In a specific aspect, the clinical service form (CSF) of the antibody drug conjugates of the present disclosure is a lyophilisate in vial containing the ADC, sodium succinate, and polysorbate 20. The lyophilisate can be reconstituted with water for injection; the solution comprises the ADC, sodium succinate, sucrose, and polysorbate 20 at a pH of about 5.0. For subsequent intravenous administration, the obtained solution will usually be further diluted into a carrier solution.

Selecting an administration regimen for a therapeutic depends on several factors, including the serum or tissue turnover rate of the entity, the level of symptoms, the immunogenicity of the entity, and the accessibility of the target cells in the biological matrix. In certain aspects, an administration regimen maximizes the amount of therapeutic delivered to the patient consistent with an acceptable level of side effects. Accordingly, the amount of biologic delivered depends in part on the particular entity and the severity of the condition being treated. Guidance in selecting appropriate doses of antibodies, cytokines, and small molecules are available (see, e.g., Wawrzynczak, Antibody Therapy, Bios Scientific Pub. Ltd, Oxfordshire, UK, 1996; Kresina (ed.), Monoclonal Antibodies, Cytokines and Arthritis, Marcel Dekker, New York, N.Y., 1991; Bach (ed.), Monoclonal Antibodies and Peptide Therapy in Autoimmune Diseases, Marcel Dekker, New York, N.Y., 1993; Baert et al., New Engl. J. Med. 348:601-608, 2003; Milgrom et al., New Engl. J. Med. 341:1966-1973, 1999; Slamon et al., New Engl. J. Med. 344:783-792, 2001; Beniaminovitz et al., New Engl. J. Med. 342:613-619, 2000; Ghosh et al., New Engl. J. Med. 348:24-32, 2003; Lipsky et al., New Engl. J. Med. 343:1594-1602, 2000).

Determination of the appropriate dose is made by the clinician, e.g., using parameters or factors known or suspected in the art to affect treatment or predicted to affect treatment. Generally, the dose begins with an amount somewhat less than the optimum dose and it is increased by small increments thereafter until the desired or optimum effect is achieved relative to any negative side effects. Important diagnostic measures include those of symptoms of, e.g., the inflammation or level of inflammatory cytokines produced.

Actual dosage levels of the active ingredients in the pharmaceutical compositions antibody drug conjugates can be varied so as to obtain an amount of the active ingredient which is effective to achieve the desired therapeutic response for a particular patient, composition, and mode of administration, without being toxic to the patient. The selected dosage level will depend upon a variety of pharmacokinetic factors including the activity of the particular compositions of the present disclosure employed, or the ester, salt or amide thereof, the route of administration, the time of administration, the rate of excretion of the particular compound being employed, the duration of the treatment, other drugs, compounds and/or materials used in combination with the particular compositions employed, the age, sex, weight, condition, general health and prior medical history of the patient being treated, and like factors known in the medical arts.

Compositions comprising antibodies or fragments thereof can be provided by continuous infusion, or by doses at intervals of, e.g., one day, one week, or 1-7 times per week. Doses can be provided intravenously, subcutaneously, topically, orally, nasally, rectally, intramuscular, intracerebral, or by inhalation. A specific dose protocol is one involving the maximal dose or dose frequency that avoids significant undesirable side effects.

For the immunoconjugates of the present disclosure, the dosage administered to a patient may be 0.0001 mg/kg to 100 mg/kg of the patient's body weight. The dosage may be between 0.0001 mg/kg and 20 mg/kg, 0.0001 mg/kg and 10 mg/kg, 0.0001 mg/kg and 5 mg/kg, 0.0001 and 2 mg/kg, 0.0001 and 1 mg/kg, 0.0001 mg/kg and 0.75 mg/kg, 0.0001 mg/kg and 0.5 mg/kg, 0.0001 mg/kg to 0.25 mg/kg, 0.0001 to 0.15 mg/kg, 0.0001 to 0.10 mg/kg, 0.001 to 0.5 mg/kg, 0.01 to 0.25 mg/kg or 0.01 to 0.10 mg/kg of the patient's body weight. The dosage of the antibodies or fragments thereof can be calculated using the patient's weight in kilograms (kg) multiplied by the dose to be administered in mg/kg.

Doses of the immunoconjugates the can be repeated and the administrations may be separated by at least 1 day, 2 days, 3 days, 5 days, 10 days, 15 days, 30 days, 45 days, 2 months, 75 days, 3 months, or at least 6 months. In a specific aspect, doses of the immunoconjugates of the present disclosure are repeated every 3 weeks.

An effective amount for a particular patient may vary depending on factors such as the condition being treated, the overall health of the patient, the method, route and dose of administration and the severity of side effects (see, e.g., Maynard et al., A Handbook of SOPs for Good Clinical Practice, Interpharm Press, Boca Raton, Fla., 1996; Dent, Good Laboratory and Good Clinical Practice, Urch Publ., London, UK, 2001).

The route of administration may be by, e.g., topical or cutaneous application, injection or infusion by intravenous, intraperitoneal, intracerebral, intramuscular, intraocular, intraarterial, intracerebrospinal, intralesional, or by sustained release systems or an implant (see, e.g., Sidman et al., Biopolymers 22:547-556, 1983; Langer et al., J. Biomed. Mater. Res. 15:167-277, 1981; Langer, Chem. Tech. 12:98-105, 1982; Epstein et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 82:3688-3692, 1985; Hwang et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 77:4030-4034, 1980; U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,350,466 and 6,316,024). Where necessary, the composition may also include a solubilizing agent or a local anesthetic such as lidocaine to ease pain at the site of the injection, or both. In addition, pulmonary administration can also be employed, e.g., by use of an inhaler or nebulizer, and formulation with an aerosolizing agent. See, e.g., U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,019,968, 5,985,320, 5,985,309, 5,934,272, 5,874,064, 5,855,913, 5,290,540, and 4,880,078; and PCT Publication Nos. WO 92/19244, WO 97/32572, WO 97/44013, WO 98/31346, and WO 99/66903, each of which is incorporated herein by reference their entirety.

A composition of the present disclosure can also be administered via one or more routes of administration using one or more of a variety of methods known in the art. As will be appreciated by the skilled artisan, the route and/or mode of administration will vary depending upon the desired results. Selected routes of administration for the immunoconjugates include intravenous, intramuscular, intradermal, intraperitoneal, subcutaneous, spinal or other parenteral routes of administration, for example by injection or infusion. Parenteral administration may represent modes of administration other than enteral and topical administration, usually by injection, and includes, without limitation, intravenous, intramuscular, intraarterial, intrathecal, intracapsular, intraorbital, intracardiac, intradermal, intraperitoneal, transtracheal, subcutaneous, subcuticular, intraarticular, subcapsular, subarachnoid, intraspinal, epidural and intrasternal injection and infusion. Alternatively, a composition of the present disclosure can be administered via a non-parenteral route, such as a topical, epidermal or mucosal route of administration, for example, intranasally, orally, vaginally, rectally, sublingually or topically. In one aspect, the immunoconjugates of the present disclosure are administered by infusion. In another aspect, the immunoconjugates are administered subcutaneously.

If the immunoconjugates of the present disclosure are administered in a controlled release or sustained release system, a pump may be used to achieve controlled or sustained release (see Langer, supra; Sefton, CRC Crit. Ref Biomed. Eng. 14:20, 1987; Buchwald et al., Surgery 88:507, 1980; Saudek et al., N. Engl. J. Med. 321:574, 1989). Polymeric materials can be used to achieve controlled or sustained release of the therapies of the immunoconjugates (see e.g., Medical Applications of Controlled Release, Langer and Wise (eds.), CRC Pres., Boca Raton, Fla., 1974; Controlled Drug Bioavailability, Drug Product Design and Performance, Smolen and Ball (eds.), Wiley, New York, 1984; Ranger and Peppas, J. Macromol. Sci. Rev. Macromol. Chem. 23:61, 1983; see also Levy et al., Science 228:190, 1985; During et al., Ann. Neurol. 25:351, 1989; Howard et al., J. Neurosurg. 7 1:105, 1989; U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,679,377; 5,916,597; 5,912,015; 5,989,463; 5,128,326; PCT Publication No. WO 99/15154; and PCT Publication No. WO 99/20253. Examples of polymers used in sustained release formulations include, but are not limited to, poly(2-hydroxy ethyl methacrylate), poly(methyl methacrylate), poly(acrylic acid), poly(ethylene-co-vinyl acetate), poly(methacrylic acid), polyglycolides (PLG), polyanhydrides, poly(N-vinyl pyrrolidone), poly(vinyl alcohol), polyacrylamide, poly(ethylene glycol), polylactides (PLA), poly(lactide-co-glycolides) (PLGA), and polyorthoesters. In one aspect, the polymer used in a sustained release formulation is inert, free of leachable impurities, stable on storage, sterile, and biodegradable. A controlled or sustained release system can be placed in proximity of the prophylactic or therapeutic target, thus requiring only a fraction of the systemic dose (see, e.g., Goodson, in Medical Applications of Controlled Release, supra, vol. 2, pp. 115-138, 1984).

Controlled release systems are discussed in the review by Langer, Science 249:1527-1533, 1990). Any technique known to one of skill in the art can be used to produce sustained release formulations comprising one or more immunoconjugates of the present disclosure. See, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 4,526,938, PCT publication WO 91/05548, PCT publication WO 96/20698, Ning et al., Radiotherapy & Oncology 39:179-189, 1996; Song et al., PDA Journal of Pharmaceutical Science & Technology 50:372-397, 1995; Cleek et al., Pro. Int'l. Symp. Control. Rel. Bioact. Mater. 24:853-854, 1997; and Lam et al., Proc. Int'l. Symp. Control Rel. Bioact. Mater. 24:759-760, 1997, each of which is incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.

If the immunoconjugates of the disclosure are administered topically, they can be formulated in the form of an ointment, cream, transdermal patch, lotion, gel, shampoo, spray, aerosol, solution, emulsion, or other form well-known to one of skill in the art. See, e.g., Remington's Pharmaceutical Sciences and Introduction to Pharmaceutical Dosage Forms, 19th ed., Mack Pub. Co., Easton, Pa. (1995). For non-sprayable topical dosage forms, viscous to semi-solid or solid forms comprising a carrier or one or more excipients compatible with topical application and having a dynamic viscosity, in some instances, greater than water are typically employed. Suitable formulations include, without limitation, solutions, suspensions, emulsions, creams, ointments, powders, liniments, salves, and the like, which are, if desired, sterilized or mixed with auxiliary agents (e.g., preservatives, stabilizers, wetting agents, buffers, or salts) for influencing various properties, such as, for example, osmotic pressure. Other suitable topical dosage forms include sprayable aerosol preparations wherein the active ingredient, in some instances, in combination with a solid or liquid inert carrier, is packaged in a mixture with a pressurized volatile (e.g., a gaseous propellant, such as Freon) or in a squeeze bottle. Moisturizers or humectants can also be added to pharmaceutical compositions and dosage forms if desired. Examples of such additional ingredients are well-known in the art.

If the compositions comprising the immunoconjugates are administered intranasally, it can be formulated in an aerosol form, spray, mist or in the form of drops. In particular, prophylactic or therapeutic agents for use according to the present disclosure can be conveniently delivered in the form of an aerosol spray presentation from pressurized packs or a nebuliser, with the use of a suitable propellant (e.g., dichlorodifluoromethane, trichlorofluoromethane, dichlorotetrafluoroethane, carbon dioxide or other suitable gas). In the case of a pressurized aerosol the dosage unit may be determined by providing a valve to deliver a metered amount. Capsules and cartridges (composed of, e.g., gelatin) for use in an inhaler or insufflator may be formulated containing a powder mix of the compound and a suitable powder base such as lactose or starch.

Methods for co-administration or treatment with a second therapeutic agent, e.g., a cytokine, steroid, chemotherapeutic agent, antibiotic, or radiation, are known in the art (see, e.g., Hardman et al., (eds.) (2001) Goodman and Gilman's The Pharmacological Basis of Therapeutics, 10.sup.th ed., McGraw-Hill, New York, N.Y.; Poole and Peterson (eds.) (2001) Pharmacotherapeutics for Advanced Practice: A Practical Approach, Lippincott, Williams & Wilkins, Phila., Pa.; Chabner and Longo (eds.) (2001) Cancer Chemotherapy and Biotherapy, Lippincott, Williams & Wilkins, Phila., Pa.). An effective amount of therapeutic may decrease the symptoms by at least 10%; by at least 20%; at least about 30%; at least 40%, or at least 50%.

Additional therapies (e.g., prophylactic or therapeutic agents), which can be administered in combination with the immunoconjugates may be administered less than 5 minutes apart, less than 30 minutes apart, 1 hour apart, at about 1 hour apart, at about 1 to about 2 hours apart, at about 2 hours to about 3 hours apart, at about 3 hours to about 4 hours apart, at about 4 hours to about 5 hours apart, at about 5 hours to about 6 hours apart, at about 6 hours to about 7 hours apart, at about 7 hours to about 8 hours apart, at about 8 hours to about 9 hours apart, at about 9 hours to about 10 hours apart, at about 10 hours to about 11 hours apart, at about 11 hours to about 12 hours apart, at about 12 hours to 18 hours apart, 18 hours to 24 hours apart, 24 hours to 36 hours apart, 36 hours to 48 hours apart, 48 hours to 52 hours apart, 52 hours to 60 hours apart, 60 hours to 72 hours apart, 72 hours to 84 hours apart, 84 hours to 96 hours apart, or 96 hours to 120 hours apart from the immunoconjugates of the present disclosure. The two or more therapies may be administered within the same patient visit.

In certain aspects, immunoconjugates can be formulated to ensure proper distribution in vivo. For example, the blood-brain barrier (BBB) excludes many highly hydrophilic compounds. To ensure that the therapeutic compounds of the disclosure cross the BBB (if desired), they can be formulated, for example, in liposomes. For methods of manufacturing liposomes, see, e.g., U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,522,811; 5,374,548; and 5,399,331. The liposomes may comprise one or more moieties which are selectively transported into specific cells or organs, thus enhance targeted drug delivery (see, e.g., Ranade, (1989) J. Clin. Pharmacol. 29:685). Exemplary targeting moieties include folate or biotin (see, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 5,416,016 to Low et al.); mannosides (Umezawa et al., (1988) Biochem. Biophys. Res. Commun. 153:1038); antibodies (Bloeman et al., (1995) FEBS Lett. 357:140; Owais et al., (1995) Antimicrob. Agents Chemother. 39:180); surfactant protein A receptor (Briscoe et al., (1995) Am. J. Physiol. 1233:134); p 120 (Schreier et al, (1994) J. Biol. Chem. 269:9090); see also K. Keinanen; M. L. Laukkanen (1994) FEBS Lett. 346:123; J. J. Killion; I. J. Fidler (1994) Immunomethods 4:273.

The present disclosure provides protocols for the administration of pharmaceutical composition comprising immunoconjugates alone or in combination with other therapies to a subject in need thereof. The combination therapies (e.g., prophylactic or therapeutic agents) can be administered concomitantly or sequentially to a subject. The therapy (e.g., prophylactic or therapeutic agents) of the combination therapies can also be cyclically administered. Cycling therapy involves the administration of a first therapy (e.g., a first prophylactic or therapeutic agent) for a period of time, followed by the administration of a second therapy (e.g., a second prophylactic or therapeutic agent) for a period of time and repeating this sequential administration, i.e., the cycle, in order to reduce the development of resistance to one of the therapies (e.g., agents) to avoid or reduce the side effects of one of the therapies (e.g., agents), and/or to improve, the efficacy of the therapies.

The therapies (e.g., prophylactic or therapeutic agents) of the combination therapies of the disclosure can be administered to a subject concurrently.

The term “concurrently” is not limited to the administration of therapies (e.g., prophylactic or therapeutic agents) at exactly the same time, but rather it is meant that a pharmaceutical composition comprising antibodies or fragments thereof are administered to a subject in a sequence and within a time interval such that the immunoconjugates can act together with the other therapy(ies) to provide an increased benefit than if they were administered otherwise. For example, each therapy may be administered to a subject at the same time or sequentially in any order at different points in time; however, if not administered at the same time, they should be administered sufficiently close in time so as to provide the desired therapeutic or prophylactic effect. Each therapy can be administered to a subject separately, in any appropriate form and by any suitable route. In various aspects, the therapies (e.g., prophylactic or therapeutic agents) are administered to a subject less than 15 minutes, less than 30 minutes, less than 1 hour apart, at about 1 hour apart, at about 1 hour to about 2 hours apart, at about 2 hours to about 3 hours apart, at about 3 hours to about 4 hours apart, at about 4 hours to about 5 hours apart, at about 5 hours to about 6 hours apart, at about 6 hours to about 7 hours apart, at about 7 hours to about 8 hours apart, at about 8 hours to about 9 hours apart, at about 9 hours to about 10 hours apart, at about 10 hours to about 11 hours apart, at about 11 hours to about 12 hours apart, 24 hours apart, 48 hours apart, 72 hours apart, or 1 week apart. In other aspects, two or more therapies (e.g., prophylactic or therapeutic agents) are administered to a within the same patient visit.

The prophylactic or therapeutic agents of the combination therapies can be administered to a subject in the same pharmaceutical composition. Alternatively, the prophylactic or therapeutic agents of the combination therapies can be administered concurrently to a subject in separate pharmaceutical compositions. The prophylactic or therapeutic agents may be administered to a subject by the same or different routes of administration.

EXAMPLES Example 1: Generation of cKIT Abs by Hvbridoma Technology

Antigen and Other Proteins

A transient expression cell line secreting human cKIT protein was generated by transfection of 293 Freestyle™ cells (Invitrogen, Carlsbad, Ca). Briefly, the cells cultivated in Freestyle™ medium (Invitrogen) were transfected using 293Fectin™ transfection reagent and a recombinant plasmid containing the ECD of the human cKIT cDNA and either a His6 tag at the C-terminus of the sequence, or a murine Fc (pFUSE, Invivogen, San Diego, CA). 48-72 hours later the media is centrifuged to remove the cells, sterile filtered, and the cleared lysate used for protein purification.

For the His6 tagged cKIT: The resulting concentrate was applied to a NiNTA His-Bind Superflow® column at 0.5 mL/min. After baseline washing with PBS, bound material was eluted with PBS with a stepwise gradient of Imidazole (10-500 mM). The resulting eluate was dialyzed against PBS, pH 7.3, sterile filtered and aliquotted. For Fc-cKit fusion, Protein G Sepharose® FastFlow columns were used (instead of NiNTA) as outlined above, and eluted with a pH 3 Glycine buffer, which was neutralized with Tris, pH 8.

Hybridoma Generation

Immunization of Mice and Production of Hybridomas

Purified cKIT was diluted 1:1 with Freunds Complete Adjuvant prior to immunization of Bcl-2 transgenic mice (C57BL/6-Tgn (bcl-2) 22 Wehi strain). Mice were immunized using a procedure that calls for Repetitive Immunization at Multiple Sites (RIMMS) (McIntyre G D., Hybridoma, 1997). Briefly, mice were injected with 1-3 μg of antigen at 8 specific sites proximal to peripheral lymph nodes (PLN). This procedure was repeated 8 times over a 12-day period. On Day 12, a test bleed was collected and the serum antibody titer was analyzed by ELISA. Pooled PLN were removed from high titer mice on Day 15. To harvest lymphocytes, PLN were washed twice with plain DMEM and then dissociated by passage through a 0.22 micron screen (Falcon #352350, BD Bioscience, San Jose, CA). The resulting lymphocytes were washed 2 additional times prior to fusion. F0 myeloma cells were mixed with lymphocytes at a ratio of 2.5 lymphocytes to 1 F0 cell. The cell mixture was centrifuged and 1 mL of PEG 1500 was subsequently added dropwise to the cell pellet for 1 min. After 30 seconds, 1 mL of DMEM was slowly added, and 1 min later, 19 mL of DMEM was added for 5 min. Fused cells were pelleted, suspended at a density of 2×10⁵ cells/mL in HAT media (DMEM+20% FBS, Pen/Strep/Glu, 1×NEAA, 1×HAT, 0.5×HFCS), and placed at 37° C. for one hr. The cells were then plated in 384-well plates at 60 μL/well.

Screening of Hybridomas Secreting Antibodies to cKIT

Ten days after fusion, hybridoma plates were screened for the presence of cKIT specific antibodies. For the ELISA screen, Maxisorp® 384-well plates (Nunc #464718) were coated with 50 μL of cKIT (diluted to 15 ng/well in PBS) and incubated overnight at 4° C. The remaining protein was aspirated and wells were blocked with 1% BSA in PBS. After 30 min incubation at room temperature, the wells were washed four times with PBS+0.05% Tween (PBST). 15 μL of hybridoma supernatant was transferred to the ELISA plates. 15 μL of mouse serum, taken at the time of PLN removal, was diluted 1:1000 in PBS and added as a positive control. 50 μL of secondary antibody (goat anti mouse IgG-HRP (Jackson Immuno Research #115-035-071, West Grove, PA), diluted 1:5000 in PBS) was added to all wells on the ELISA plates. After incubation at room temperature for 1 h, the plates were washed eight times with PBST. 25 μL of TMB (KPL #50-76-05) was added and after 30 min incubation at room temperature; the plates were read at an absorbance of 605 nm. Cells from positive wells were expanded into 24-well plates in HT media (DMEM+20% FBS, Pen/Strep/Glu, 1×NEAA, 1×HT, 0.5×HFCS).

Antibody Purification

Supernatant containing cKIT antibodies were purified using protein G (Upstate #16-266 (Billerica, MA)). Prior to loading the supernatant, the resin was equilibrated with 10 column volumes of PBS. Following binding of the sample, the column was washed with 10 column volumes of PBS, and the antibody was then eluted with 5 column volumes of 0.1 M Glycine, pH 2.0. Column fractions were immediately neutralized with 1/10th volume of Tris HCl, pH 9.0. The OD280 of the fractions was measured, and positive fractions were pooled and dialyzed overnight against PBS, pH 7.2.

Example 2: Humanization and Affinity Maturation of Anti-cKIT Antibodies

Design of Humanization

VH and VL sequences of hybridoma derived anti-cKIT antibody 9P3 are SEQ ID NO:9 and SEQ ID NO:18, respectively Amino acid sequences of human IgG1 constant domains used to generate full IgG1 are SEQ ID NO:10 for the heavy chain and SEQ ID NO:19 for the light chain Humanization of the heavy chain was accomplished by grafting the 3 CDR regions (GFTFSDYYMA (SEQ ID NO: 166,)) (NINYDGSSTYYLDS (SEQ ID NO:167)) and (GDYYGTTYWYFDV (SEQ ID NO:168) from anti-cKIT antibody 9P3, onto human germline acceptor framework VH3_3-07 (vBASE database). Humanization of the light chain was accomplished by either grafting the 3 CDR regions (RASQDISNYLN (SEQ ID NO:169)), (YTSRLQS (SEQ ID NO:170)) and (QQGKKLWS (SEQ ID NO:171)) from anti-cKIT antibody 9P3, onto human germline acceptor framework VK3-L25 (vBASE database) or grafting 2 CDR regions (SEQ ID NO:170 and SEQ ID NO:171) onto human germline acceptor framework VK1-012 (vBASE database). In addition to the CDR regions, one framework residue of the variable light chain domain, i.e. VL #71 and in the case of VK3-L25 VL #79 (residue numbering based on SEQ ID NO:21) was retained from the 9P3 sequence. Further, the human J elements JH4 and JK4 were used for the heavy and light chain, respectively. The resulting amino acid sequences of the humanized antibody heavy chain is SEQ ID NO: 11 and for the two light chains SEQ ID NO: 20 (VK1-012) and SEQ ID NO: 21 (VK3-L6).

We hypothesized that the amino acid motif aspartate followed by glycine (DG) may be susceptible to post-translational modification (iso-aspartate formation) and that lysines within the CDRs may decrease the fraction of active antibody after antibody-drug conjugation. A combination of random mutagenesis (i.e. error-prone PCR) and directed mutagenesis was applied to optimize the humanized antibodies.

Generation of Humanized Sequences

DNA sequences coding for humanized VL and VH domains were ordered at GeneArt (Life Technologies Inc. Regensburg, Germany) including codon optimization for Homo sapiens. Sequences coding for VL and VH domains were subcloned by cut and paste from the GeneArt derived vectors into expression vectors suitable for secretion in mammalian cells. The heavy and light chains were cloned into individual expression vectors to allow co-transfection. Elements of the expression vector include a promoter (Cytomegalovirus (CMV) enhancer-promoter), a signal sequence to facilitate secretion, a polyadenylation signal and transcription terminator (Bovine Growth Hormone (BGH) gene), an element allowing episomal replication and replication in prokaryotes (e.g. SV40 origin and ColE1 or others known in the art) and elements to allow selection (ampicillin resistance gene and zeocin marker).

Expression and Purification of Humanized Antibodies

Human Embryonic Kidney cells constitutively expressing the SV40 large T antigen (HEK293-T, ATCC11268) are one of the preferred host cell lines for transient expression of humanized and/or optimized IgG proteins. Transfection is performed using PEI (Polyethylenimine, MW 25.000 linear, Polysciences, USA Cat. No. 23966) as transfection reagent. The PEI stock solution is prepared by carefully dissolving 1 g of PEI in 900 ml cell culture grade water at room temperature (RT). To facilitate dissolution of PEI, the solution is acidified by addition of HCl to pH 3-5, followed by neutralization with NaOH to a final pH of 7.05. Finally, the volume is adjusted to 1 L and the solution is filtered through a 0.22 μm filter, aliquotted and frozen at −80° C. until further use. Once thawed, an aliquot can be re-frozen up to 3 times at −20° C. but should not be stored long term at −20° C. HEK 293T cells are cultivated using a Novartis proprietary serum-free culture medium for transfection and propagation of the cells, and ExCell® VPRO serum-free culture medium (SAFC Biosciences, USA, Cat. No. 24561C) as production/feed medium. Cells prepared for transient transfections are cultivated in suspension culture. For small scale (<5 L) transfections, cells are grown in Corning shake flasks (Corning, Tewksbury, MA) on an orbital shaker (100-120 rpm) in a humidified incubator at 5% CO2 (seed flasks). Cells in the seed cultures should be maintained in the exponential growth phase (cell densities between 5×10⁵ and 3×10⁶/mL) and display a viability of >90% for transfection. Cell densities outside of this range will result in either a lag phase after dilution or reduced transfection efficiency. For small scale (<5 L) transfection an aliquot of cells is taken out of the seed cultures and adjusted to 1.4×10⁶ cells/mL in 36% of the final volume with Novartis serum-free culture medium. The DNA solution (Solution 1: 0.5 mg of heavy chain and 0.5 mg of light chain expression plasmid for a 1 L transfection) is prepared by diluting the DNA to 1 mg/L (final volume) in 7% of the final culture volume followed by gentle mixing. To prevent bacterial contamination, this solution is filtered using a 0.22 μm filter (e.g. Millipore Stericup). Then 3 mg/L (final volume) of PEI solution is also diluted in 7% of final culture volume and mixed gently (Solution 2). Both solutions are incubated for 5-10 min at room temperature (RT). Thereafter solution 2 is added to solution 1 with gentle mixing and incubated for another 5-15 minutes at room temperature. The transfection mix is then added to the cells and the cultivation of cells is continued for 4 to 6 hours. Finally, the remaining 50% of total production volume are achieved by addition of ExCell® VPRO serum-free culture medium. The cell cultivation is continued for eleven days post transfection. The culture is harvested by centrifugation at 4500 rpm for 20 minutes at 4° C. (Heraeus®, Multifuge 3 S-R, Thermo Scientific, Rockford, IL). The cell supernatant recovered is sterile filtered through a stericup filter (0.22 μm) and stored at 4° C. until further processing.

Purification was performed on an “ÄKTA 100 explorer Air” chromatography system at 4° C. in a cooling cabinet, using a freshly sanitized (0.25 M NaOH) HiTrap ProtA MabSelect®SuRe, 5 ml column. The column was equilibrated with 5 column volumes (CV) of PBS (Gibco, Life Technologies, Carlsbad, CA), and then the sterile filtered supernatant (2 L) was loaded at 4.0 ml/min. The column was washed with 8 CV of PBS to elute the unbound sample and again washed with 5 CV of PBS. Antibody was eluted with 5 CV of 50 mM citrate, 70 mM NaCl pH 3.2. The eluate was collected in 3 ml fractions; fractions were pooled and adjusted at pH 7 with 1 M Tris HCl pH10. The pools were pooled and sterile filtered (Millipore Steriflip, 0.22 um), the OD 280 nm was measured in a Spectrophotometer ND-1000 (NanoDrop), and the protein concentration was calculated based on the sequence data. The eluate was tested for aggregation (SEC-MALS) and purity (SDS-PAGE, LAL and MS). For the second purification step, if needed, pools from the first purification were loaded into a freshly sanitised (0.5 M NaOH) SPX (Hi Load 16/60 Superdex 200 grade 120 mL (GE-Healthcare). The column was equilibrated with PBS and the run was done with PBS buffer at 1 ml/min, the eluate was collected in 1.2 ml fractions and analyzed as described for the first purification step.

Example 3: Screening for Anti-cKIT Antibodies

HuCAL PLATINUM® Pannings

For selection of antibodies recognizing human cKIT multiple panning strategies were employed. Therapeutic antibodies against human cKIT proteins were generated by selection of clones having high affinity binding affinities, using as the source of antibody variant proteins a commercially available phage display library, the Morphosys HuCAL PLATINUM® library (Morphosys, Munich DE). The phagemid library is based on the HuCAL® concept (Knappik et al., (2000) J Mol Biol 296: 57-86) and employs the CysDisplay® technology for displaying the Fab on the phage surface (Lohning, WO 01/05950). For isolation of anti-cKIT antibodies, standard panning strategies were performed using solid phase, solution, whole cell and differential whole cell panning approaches.

Solid Phase Panning Against cKIT

An 96-well Maxisorp® plate was coated with human or mouse cKIT Fc fusion protein overnight at 4° C. For each panning, about 4×10¹³ HuCAL PLATINUM® phage-antibodies were added to each antigen coated and incubated for 2 h at room temperature (RT) on a microtiter plate shaker. Afterwards, unspecific bound phages were washed off by several washing steps and specifically bound phages, were eluted using 25 mM DTT in 10 mM Tris/HCl pH 8.

The eluate was transferred into 14 ml of E. coli bacteria and incubated for phage infection. The infected bacteria were resuspended in 2×YT medium, plated on LB/Cam agar plates and incubated overnight. Colonies were scraped off the plates and were used for phage rescue, polyclonal amplification of selected clones, and phage production. With purified phage the next panning round was started.

The second and third round of solid phase panning was performed according to the protocol of the first round except for decreased amounts of antigen and more stringent washing conditions.

Capture Panning Against cKIT

For capture panning, the antigen cKIT/murine Fc fusion proteins were immobilized on a 96-well Maxisorp® plate via an goat anti-mouse Fc capture antibody. During phage blocking, human and mouse γ globulin were added to the blocking buffer to avoid selection of antibodies against the capture antibody and mouse Fc part of the antigen. The antigen coating and phage blocking procedures in the capture panning was performed as described in the Solid Phase Panning protocol (see above).

Solution Panning Protocol with Streptavidin-Coupled Magnetic Beads

Solution pannings were performed in two different modes (“classical” and “alternative”). For each panning, about 4×10¹³ HuCAL PLATINUM® phage-antibodies were blocked with an equal volume of 2× Chemiblocker/0.1% Tween20. For removal of Streptavidin- or bead-binding phage, pre-adsorption of blocked phage particles was performed twice using 1 mg blocked Streptavidin beads each.

a) “Classical” mode: Biotinylated 16P23 mAb was incubated with human cKIT ECD-His protein and was added to the blocked phage particles. The 16P23 antibody is an internally generated hybridoma and was used in various screening protocols as a capture antibody to expose different domains on the ECD of cKIT. The 16P23 antibody was also used for antibody binning purposes. After incubation the phage-antigen complexes were captured using Streptavidin beads and phage particles bound to the Streptavidin beads were collected with a magnetic separator.

b) “Alternative” mode: Biotinylated 16P23 mAb was added to streptavidin beads and the antibody-bead mix was incubated on a rotator at room temperature for 30 min. Beads were washed and resuspended in PBS containing human cKIT ECD-His protein. Subsequently, the phages were added and the antibody-bead-antigen-phage complex was rotated for an additional 1 hour at room temperature on a rotator. After this last incubation step the beads were captured with a magnetic separator and the supernatants were discarded.

Using both display methods unspecific bound phage were washed off by several washing steps using PBS/0.05% Tween20 and PBS. Specifically bound phages were eluted from Streptavidin beads by using 25 mM DTT in 10 mM Tris/HCl pH 8. Subsequent phage infection and phage production was performed according to the Solid Phase Panning protocol.

The second and third round of the solution panning was performed according to the protocol of the first round except for decreased amounts of antigen and more stringent washing conditions.

Whole Cell Panning Against cKIT

Target cells expressing antigen human, mouse or rat cKIT were used as antigens and were contacted with HuCAL PLATINUM® phage-antibodies for pannings The phage-cell complexes were washed three times in PBS/5% FCS. Elution of specifically bound phage from target cells was performed with 0.1M glycine-HCl/0.5M NaCl, pH 2.2. Subsequent phage infection and phage production was performed according to the Solid Phase Panning protocol. The second and third round of the whole cell panning was performed according to the protocol of the first round.

Differential Whole Cell Panning Against cKIT

In the differential whole cell panning, the selection was done alternating on cells and purified protein. The selection rounds on purified antigen were performed as described in the Solid Phase Panning protocol For the selection rounds on cells please refer to the procedure in the Whole Cell Panning Against cKIT section.

Maturation Pannings

In order to obtain specific antibodies with increased affinities, maturation pannings were performed (Prassler et al., Future Med. Immuno. 2009 1(4):571-583). For this purpose, sequenced clones already tested for cKIT specific binding were used for LCDR3 or HCDR2 cassette exchange. Afterwards two rounds of solid phase pannings were performed with human and/or mouse cKIT Fc fusion protein as described in the Solid Phase Panning protocol.

a) For LCDR3 RapMAT®: Fab-encoding fragments of phage derived pMORPH30® vector DNA (Morphosys, Munich DE) were enzymatically digested and inserts were replaced with TRIM™ LCDR3 maturation cassettes (Virnekaes et al., NAR 1994 22(25):5600-5607). Subsequently, 1.25 μg pMORPH30® display vector was ligated with the insert fragment carrying the diversified LCDR3 s.

b) For HCDR2 RapMAT®: After the 2nd round of panning, Fab-encoding fragments of phage derived pMORPH30® vector DNA were enzymatically digested and inserts were replaced with TRIM™ HCDR2 maturation cassettes (Virnekas et al., supra). Subsequently, 1.25 μg pMORPH30® display vector was ligated with the insert fragment carrying the diversified HCDR2s.

The generated libraries were amplified and subjected to two rounds of panning with either increased stringency and reduced antigen concentration or alternation of human and mouse cKIT antigen to identify affinity improved clones.

Preparation of Fab Containing Bacterial Lysates for ELISA Screening

For initial screening and characterization an overnight culture of individual Fab-expressing E. coli clones were lysed using lysozyme, 4 mM EDTA and 10 U/μl Benzonase. Fab containing E. coli lysates were used for ELISA, FACS and SET screening.

Screening of Fab-Containing Raw Bacterial Lysates

ELISA Screening

Using ELISA screening, single Fab clones are identified from panning output for binding to the target antigen. Fabs are tested using Fab containing crude E. coli lysates.

Fab Expression Check ELISA

For verification of Fab expression in the prepared E. coli lysates, Maxisorp® 384 well plates (Nunc, Sigma-Aldrich, St. Louis MO) were coated with Fd fragment specific sheep anti-human IgG diluted 1:1000 in PBS. After blocking with 5% skim milk powder in PBS containing 0.05% Tween20, Fab-containing E. coli lysates were added. Subsequently the bound HuCAL®-Fab fragments were detected by incubation with F(ab)2 specific goat anti-human IgG conjugated to alkaline phosphatase (diluted 1:5000) followed by addition of AttoPhos® fluorescence substrate (Roche, #11681982001, Mannheim, DE). Fluorescence emission at 535 nm was recorded with excitation at 430 nm.

ELISA Screening on Directly Coated Antigen

Maxisorp® 384 well plates were coated with mFc tagged human cKIT ECD protein at a concentration of 10 μg/ml in PBS. After blocking of plates with 5% skim milk powder in PBS, Fab-containing E. coli lysates were added. Binding of Fabs was detected by F(ab)₂ specific goat anti-human IgG conjugated to alkaline phosphatase (diluted 1:5000) using Attophos® fluorescence substrate (Roche, #11681982001, Mannheim, DE). Fluorescence emission at 535 nm was recorded with excitation at 430 nm.

Epitope Binning with Fab BEL Lysates

To identify potential ligand binding competitors prior to affinity maturation, a competition ELISA screening with Fab E. coli lysates and 16P23 antibody, a known ligand binding competitor, was performed. For this purpose, Maxisorp® 384 well plates were coated with mFc tagged human cKIT ECD protein and blocked as described above (ELISA Screening on Directly Coated Antigen).

16P23 mAb was added at a final concentration of 5 μg/ml followed by incubation with Fab-containing E. coli lysates. Finally, binding of Fabs was detected with an anti-FLAG alkaline phosphatase-conjugated antibody (Sigma A-9469, diluted to 1:10000) using Attophos® fluorescence substrate (Roche, #11681982001). Fluorescence emission at 535 nm was recorded with excitation at 430 nm.

FACS Screening

In FACS screening, single Fab clones binding to cell surface expressed antigen are identified from the panning output. Fabs are tested using Fab containing crude E. coli lysates.

FACS Screening was performed either in 96- or 384-well plate format:

a) In 96-well plate format using a BD FACS array device, 100 μl of cell-suspension were transferred into a fresh 96-well plate (resulting in 1×10⁵ cells/well). Target cell suspension containing plate was centrifuged and supernatant was discarded. Remaining cell pellet was resuspended and 50 μl of Fab containing BEL extracts was added to the corresponding wells. Plate was incubated on ice for 1 hour. Following incubation, cells were spun down and washed three times with 200 μl FACS buffer (PBS, 3% FCS). After each washing step, cells were centrifuged and carefully resuspended. Secondary detection antibody (PE conjugated goat anti human IgG; Dianova, Hamburg, DE) was added and samples were incubate on ice and subsequently washed according to Fab incubation. Finally, cell pellets were resuspended in 150 μl FACS buffer per well and samples were analyzed in BD FACS array.

b) In 384-well plate format using a BD Calibur® HTS device (BD Biosciences, San Jose, CA), 20 μl of cell-suspension were transferred into a fresh 384 round well plate (resulting in 4×10⁴ cells/well). Target cell suspension containing plate was centrifuged and supernatant was discarded. Remaining cell pellet was resuspended and 20 μl of Fab containing extracts was added to the corresponding wells. Plate was incubated for 1 hour shaking at 4° C. Following incubation, cells were spun down and washed three times with 40 μl FACS buffer (PBS, 3% FCS). After each washing step, cells were centrifuged and carefully resuspended. 40 μl of PE conjugated goat anti human detection antibody was added and samples were incubated on ice and subsequently washed according to Fab incubation. Finally, cell pellets were resuspended in 35 μl FACS buffer per well and samples were measured with BD FACS Calibur®/HTS device.

Affinity Determination

For K_(D) determinations, monomer fractions of antibody protein were used (at least 90% monomer content, analyzed by analytical SEC; Superdex® 75 PC3.2/30 (GE Healthcare, Pittsburgh, PA) for Fab, or Tosoh TSKgel G3000 SW_(XL) (7.8 mm/30.0 cm) (Tosoh Bioscience GmbH, Stuttgart, DE) for IgG, respectively).

Solution Equilibrium Titration (SET) Method for KD Determination Using Sector Imager 6000 (MSD)

Affinity determination in solution was basically performed as described in the literature (Friquet et al., J. Immuno. Meth. 1985; 77:305-319). In order to improve the sensitivity and accuracy of the SET method, it was transferred from classical ELISA to ECL based technology (Haenel et al., Anal. Biochem. 2005 339(1):182-4). 1 mg/ml goat-anti-human (Fab)2 fragment specific antibodies (Dianova) were labeled with MSD Sulfo-TAG′ NHS-Ester (Meso Scale Discovery, Gaithersburg, MD, USA) according to the manufacturer's instructions. MSD plates were coated with antigen and the equilibrated samples were transferred to those plates. After washing, 30 μl per well of the MSD-Sulfo-tag labeled detection antibody (anti-human (Fab)2) was added to the MSD plate and incubated on a shaker. After washing the MSD plate and adding 30 μl/well MSD Read Buffer T with surfactant, electrochemiluminescence signals were detected using a Sector® Imager 6000 (Meso Scale Discovery, Gaithersburg, MD, USA).

The data was evaluated with XLfit (IDBS) software applying customized fitting models. For KD determination of Fab molecules the following fit model was used (according to (Haenel et al., Anal. Biochem 2005; 339(1):182-184), modified according to (Abraham et al., J. Mol. Recogn 1996; 9:456-461)):

$y = {B_{\max} - \left( {\frac{B_{\max}}{{2\lbrack{Fab}\rbrack}_{t}}\left( {\lbrack{Fab}\rbrack_{t} + x + K_{D} - \sqrt{\left( {\lbrack{Fab}\rbrack_{t} + x + K_{D}} \right)^{2} - {4\;{x\lbrack{Fab}\rbrack}_{t}}}} \right)} \right)}$

-   -   [Fab]_(t): applied total Fab concentration     -   x: applied total soluble antigen concentration (binding sites)     -   B_(max): maximal signal of Fab without antigen     -   K_(D): affinity     -   For K_(D) determination of IgG molecules the following fit model         for IgG was used (modified according to (Pichler et al., 1997)):

$y = {\frac{2\; B_{\max}}{\lbrack{IgG}\rbrack}\left( {\frac{\lbrack{IgG}\rbrack}{2} - \frac{\left( {\frac{x + \lbrack{IgG}\rbrack + K_{D}}{2} - \sqrt{\frac{\left( {x + \lbrack{IgG}\rbrack + K_{D}} \right)^{2}}{4} - {x\lbrack{IgG}\rbrack}}} \right)^{2}}{2\lbrack{IgG}\rbrack}} \right)}$

-   -   [IgG]: applied total IgG concentration     -   x: applied total soluble antigen concentration (binding sites)     -   B_(max): maximal signal of IgG without antigen     -   K_(D): affinity         Experimental Settings:

K_(D) determination of HuCAL® anti cKIT IgGs was basically performed as follows: human cKIT-Fc was coated at 0.1 μg/ml in PBS overnight at 4° C. on standard MSD plates/assay buffer for 1 hour at room temperature on streptavidin MSD plates. Subsequently MSD plates were blocked with PBS with 3% BSA for 1 hour at room temperature. Streptavidin plates were blocked overnight at 4° C. with PBS with 5% BSA before antigen coating. For titration of antigen human cKIT-His was applied.

Subsequently, the concentration of unbound Fab was quantified via ECL detection using the Sector Imager 6000 (Meso Scale Discovery, Gaithersburg, MD, USA). Results were processed using XLfit (IDBS) software, applying the corresponding fit model to estimate affinities and thus identify clones most improved by the maturation.

In Vitro Biochemical Assays (Cross-Reactivity and Domain-Binding Analysis)

Purified IgGs were tested in ELISA for binding to human, cyno and mouse cKIT full-length ECD proteins as well as human cKIT ECD domain constructs D1-3 and D4-5. For this purpose plates were coated with antigen at a concentration of 5 μg/ml in PBS over night at 4° C. Binding of IgGs was detected by anti-human or anti-mouse F(ab)2 conjugated to alkaline phosphatase (diluted 1:5000 in 1% MPBS) using Attophos® as substrate. Fluorescence emission was measured at an excitation of 430 nm and an emission of 535 nm.

Epitope Binning of Purified IgGs

Purified IgG candidates were tested for competition with internally generated tool antibodies, previously shown to define individual bins on the extracellular domain of cKIT. For this purpose, IgGs were coated at constant amounts on Maxisorp® plates and tested for competition with increasing amounts of competitor IgG in solution. As positive control, the coated IgG was analyzed for competition with itself in solution. All tested IgGs were preincubated in 50× excess with glycobiotinylated human cKIT-Fc fusion for 1 hour at room temperature in solution. Antigen/antibody complexes were then added to the coated antibodies and detection of bound complexes occurred via the biotinylated antigen. In general, signals at high IgG concentration could only be obtained when the coated IgG was able to bind to accessible epitopes on the antigen different to the tested IgG in solution (i.e. a non competitive antibody). In contrast, for competitive antibodies, antibodies with partially overlapping epitopes or antibodies that block the epitope by steric hindrance, binding signals at high IgG concentration were significantly decreased in contrast to controls.

Respective wells of Maxisorp® plates were coated with 20 μl/well of IgG dilution at a concentration of 1.2 μg/ml in PBS, incubated overnight at 4° C. and then washed 3× with PBST. Plates were blocked with 90 μl 3% BSA/PBS well for 1 hour at room temperature and washed 3× with PBST.

EC50 Determination on Cells Via FACS

Purified IgGs were tested at a single concentration or titrated in FACS to determine EC50 values for binding to cell surface expressed human, mouse or rat cKIT. For this purpose, Mo7e, P815 or RBL-2H3 cells were harvested with Accutase® (Life Technologies, Carlsbad, CA) and diluted to 1×10⁶/ml in FACS buffer. All subsequent steps were done on ice to prevent internalization of the receptor. The cell suspension was filled with 100 μl/well into a 96 well U bottom plate. After centrifugation at 210 g for 5 min at 4° C., buffer was discarded. 100 μl of the specific mAbs diluted in FACS buffer was then added per well at a concentration of 15 μg/ml or in titration experiments at a serial dilution of antibody concentrations (1:3 dilution steps, starting concentration of 15 μg/ml). After 1 h incubation on ice, cells were washed three times with 150 μl FACS buffer. Secondary PE conjugated goat anti human detection antibody (diluted 1:200 in FACS buffer) was added to the cells with 100 μl/well and incubated on ice for 1 h. Cells were washed three times with 150 μl FACS buffer. Finally, cell pellets were resuspended in 200 μl FACS buffer per well and samples were analyzed in BD FACS array.

In Vitro Bio-Assays

SCF-Dependent Proliferation Assay

Proliferation assays were performed on the Mo7e cell line (human acute megakaryoblastic leukemia, DSMZ no.: ACC 104) cultured in RPMI1640 with stable glutamine (PAN #P04-18500), 10% FCS and 10 ng/ml SCF (R&D CAT #255-SC; Lot #CM2810061, R&D Corp, Berkeley CA).

In the SCF-dependent proliferation assay purified IgGs or IgG containing cell culture supernatants were tested. In both experimental settings cells were harvested and resuspended in 50 μl starve medium (culture medium without SCF) at a concentration of 0.5×10⁶ cells/ml and incubated at 37° C. for 18 h. Cells were then resuspended at a concentration of 1×10⁶ cells/ml in starving medium with 60 ng/ml SCF (2× concentrated, final concentration after addition of antibody is 30 ng/ml). 50 μl of cells (5×10⁴ cells/well) and 50 μl of 2× concentrated purified antibodies or undiluted cell culture supernatants were added per well of a white 96-well flat with clear bottom plates. For negative and positive controls, cells without SCF and without antibody or cells with SCF and without antibody were included. Plates were incubated for 48 h at 37° C. and finally cell numbers were determined using CellTiter-Glo® (Promega #G7571, Promega, Madison, WI) according to the manufacturer's instructions.

Fab-ZAP ADC Piggyback Assay

To test the ability of antibodies to internalize after receptor binding, an ADC assay was performed mixing Fab-ZAP reagent (goat anti-hu-mAb-saporin-coupled; ATS Biotechnology, Cat #IT-51-250, ATS Bio, San Diego, CA) either with purified IgGs or with IgG containing cell culture supernatants. Cytotoxic potential was tested on the cancer cell line CMK-11-5 (acute megakaryoblastic leukemia cells (Hamamoto et al., Int. J. Hematol. 1993 58(1-2):105-112) (JCRB #IFO50430)) cultured in RPMI1640+10% FCS) as these cells show high expression of cKIT.

Cells in culture were counted and diluted in medium to a concentration of 1×10⁵ cells/ml. 50 μl cell suspension (5000 cells/well) were transferred to 96-well plates (Flat Clear Bottom White Plate TC-Treated, Corning Cat #3903, Corning, Tewksbury, MA). In a separate plate (96 Well V bottom, Nunc, Cat #249946, Nunc Sigma-Aldrich, St. Louis, MO) IgGs were diluted in medium. IgG containing cell culture supernatants were diluted 1:125 and purified IgGs to a concentration of 0.4 nM resulting in a total volume of 60 μl/well. An equal volume of FabZAP solution at a concentration of 5 nM was added and the plate was incubated for 60 min at 37° C. 50 μl of antibody/Fab-ZAP conjugates were transferred to CMK-11-5 cells (total volume 100 μl). For controls, wells with cells only (=100% viability control) and cells only incubated with Fab-ZAP (to check for unspecific killing of the secondary reagent) were prepared. Final concentration of Fab-ZAP was 1.25 nM. Plates were incubated for 72 h at 37° C. and 5% CO₂. Cell numbers were determined using CellTiter-Glo® (Promega #G7571) according to the manufacturer's instructions. Viability was normalized to the cells only control.

Summary

In screening for cKIT antibodies, 2 different strategies were performed:

Strategy 1:

Candidates with human/cyno x-reactivity (217 HCDR3 families) were selected on high affinity and after IgG conversion clones were screened for functionality in CMK-11-5 FabZAP ADC assay and Mole proliferation assay. Based on functional activity and diversity candidates were selected for exploratory scale expression. An example of an antibody to come from this type of strategy is antibody 20507.

Strategy 2:

Candidates with human/cyno/mouse x-reactivity (5 HCDR3 families) were affinity matured and after IgG conversion candidates were selected for expression.

In summary, 82 purified IgG candidates from strategy 1 and 2 were subjected to in-depth characterization. From this pool of 82, 26 IgG candidates were selected for upscaled production, toxin conjugation and subsequent testing as antibody drug conjugates in in vitro and in vivo experiments. An example of an antibody to come from this type of strategy is antibody 20376.

Upon in-depth characterization, the 26 antibodies (14 candidates from strategy 1 and 12 candidates from strategy 2) belonging to 16 different HCDR3 families were selected for upscaled production and testing as antibody-drug conjugate. Candidates were selected according to following criteria: 1) Potent killing of wildtype and mutant cKIT expressing cells in Fab-DM1 piggyback assay with EC50 in the sub- to low-nanomolar range, 2) the KD values of 24/26 IgGs for cyno cKIT are within 3-fold range to that determined for the human cKIT. In addition, 12/26 IgGs crossreact with mouse and rat cKIT expressed on cells.

Selected candidates from this screening could be assigned to different epitope bins:

-   -   1) 19/26 IgGs belong to Bin 1 or Bin 6 (binding to cKIT D1-3,         ligand binding domains)     -   2) 6/26 IgGs belong to Bin 8 (binding to cKIT D4-5, dimerization         domains)     -   3)1/26 IgGs belong to Bin 2, which had high affinity to human         cKIT but had only weak affinity to cyno cKIT.

Example 4: Constructs for Human, Cyno, Mouse and Rat cKIT ECD Proteins

Human, mouse and rat cKIT extracellular domains were gene synthesized based on amino acid sequences from the GenBank or Uniprot databases (see Table 4 below). Cynomolgus cKIT and 1 ECD cDNA template were gene synthesized based on amino acid sequences information generated using mRNA from various cyno tissues (e.g. Zyagen Laboratories; Table 5 below). All synthesized DNA fragments were cloned into appropriate expression vectors e.g. hEF1-HTLV based vector (pFUSE-mIgG2A-Fc2) with C-terminal tags to allow for purification.

TABLE 4 Constructs Accession SEQ ID Name Description Number NO: Human Human cKIT tr. variant 2 , residues 26-520-TAG NM_001093772 (SEQ ID cKIT D1-5 QPSVSPGEPSPPSIHPGKSDLIVRVGDEIRLLCTDPGFVK NO: 172) WTFEILDETNENKQNEWITEKAEATNTGKYTCTNKHG LSNSIYVFVRDPAKLFLVDRSLYGKEDNDTLVRCPLTD PEVTNYSLKGCQGKPLPKDLRFIPDPKAGIMIKSVKRA YHRLCLHCSVDQEGKSVLSEKFILKVRPAFKAVPVVS VSKASYLLREGEEFTVTCTIKDVSSSVYSTWKRENSQT KLQEKYNSWHHGDFNYERQATLTISSARVNDSGVFM CYANNTFGSANVTTTLEVVDKGFINIFPMINTTVFVND GENVDLIVEYEAFPKPEHQQWIYMNRTFTDKWEDYPK SENESNIRYVSELHLTRLKGTEGGTYTFLVSNSDVNAA IAFNVYVNTKPEILTYDRLVNGMLQCVAAGFPEPTID WYFCPGTEQRCSASVLPVDVQTLNSSGPPFGKLVVQS SIDSSAFKHNGTVECKAYNDVGKTSAYFNFAFKEQIHP HTLFTPRSHHHHHH Human Human cKIT tr. Variant 1, residues 26-311-TAG NM_000222 (SEQ ID cKIT D1-3 QPSVSPGEPSPPSIHPGKSDLIVRVGDEIRLLCTDPGFVK NO: 173) WTFEILDETNENKQNEWITEKAEATNTGKYTCTNKHG LSNSIYVFVR DPAKL FLVDRSLYGKEDNDTLVRCPLT DPEVTNYSLKGCQGKPLPKDLRFIPDPKAGIMIKSVKR AYHRLCLHCSVD QEGKSVLSE KFILKVRPAFKAVPVV SVSKASYLLREGEEFTVTCTIKDVSSSVYSTWKRENSQ TKLQEKYNSWHHGDFNYERQATLTISSARVNDSGVF MCYANNTFGSANVTTTLEVVDKGRSHHHHHH Human Human cKIT tr. variant 1, residues 311-524-TAG NM_000222 (SEQ ID cKIT D4-5 GFINIFPMINTTVFVNDGENVDLIVEYEAFPKPEHQQWI NO: 174) YMNRTFTDKWEDYPKSENESNIRYVSELHLTRLKGTE GGTYTFLVSNSDVNAAIAFNVYVNTKPEILTYDRLVN GMLQCVAAGFPEPTIDWYFCPGTEQRCSASVLPVDVQ TLNSSGPPFGKLVVQSSIDSSAFKHNGTVECKAYNDVG KTSAYFNFAFKGNNKEQIHPHTLFTPRSHHHHHH Mouse cKIT Mouse cKIT tr. variant 1, residues 26-527-TAG NM_001122733 (SEQ ID D1-5 SQPSASPGEPSPPSIHPAQSELIVEAGDTLSLTCIDPDFV NO: 175) RWTFKTYFNEMVENKKNEWIQEKAEATRTGTYTCSN SNGLTSSIYVFVRDPAKLFLVGLPLFGKEDSDALVRCP LTDPQVSNYSLIECDGKSLPTDLTFVPNPKAGITIKNVK RAYHRLCVRCAAQRDGTWLHSDKFTLKVRAAIKAIPV VSVPETSHLLKKGDTFTVVCTIKDVSTSVNSMWLKMN PQPQHIAQVKHNSWHRGDFNYERQETLTISSARVDDS GVFMCYANNTFGSANVTTTLKVVEKGFINISPVKNTT VFVTDGENVDLVVEYEAYPKPEHQQWIYMNRTSANK GKDYVKSDNKSNIRYVNQLRLTRLKGTEGGTYTFLVS NSDASASVTFNVYVNTKPEILTYDRLINGMLQCVAEG FPEPTIDWYFCTGAEQRCTTPVSPVDVQVQNVSVSPFG KLVVQSSIDSSVFRHNGTVECKASNDVGKSSAFFNFAF KEQIQAHTLFTPLEVLFQGPRSPRGPTIKPCPPCKCPAP NLLGGPSVFIFPPKIKDVLMISLSPIVTCVVVDVSEDDP DVQISWFVNNVEVHTAQTQTHREDYNSTLRVVSALPI QHQDWMSGKEFKCKVNNKDLPAPIERTISKPKGSVRA PQVYVLPPPEEEMTKKQVTLTCMVTDFMPEDIYVEWT NNGKTELNYKNTEPVLDSDGSYFMYSKLRVEKKNWV ERNSYSCSVVHEGLHNHHTTKSFSRTPGK Rat cKIT Rat cKIT, residues 25-526-TAG NM_022264 (SEQ ID D1-5 SQPSASPGEPSPPSIQPAQSELIVEAGDTIRLTCTDPAFV NO: 176) KWTFEILDVRIENKQSEWIREKAEATHTGKYTCVSGSG LRSSIYVFVRDPAVLFLVGLPLFGKEDNDALVRCPLTD PQVSNYSLIECDGKSLPTDLKFVPNPKAGITIKNVKRA YHRLCIRCAAQREGKWMRSDKFTLKVRAAIKAIPVVS VPETSHLLKEGDTFTVICTIKDVSTSVDSMWIKLNPQP QSKAQVKRNSWHQGDFNYERQETLTISSARVNDSGVF MCYANNTFGSANVTTTLKVVEKGFINIFPVKNTTVFVT DGENVDLVVEFEAYPKPEHQQWIYMNRTPTNRGEDY VKSDNQSNIRYVNELRLTRLKGTEGGTYTFLVSNSDVS ASVTFDVYVNTKPEILTYDRLMNGRLQCVAAGFPEPTI DWYFCTGAEQRCTVPVPPVDVQIQNASVSPFGKLVVQ SSIDSSVFRHNGTVECKASNAVGKSSAFFNFAFKGNSK EQIQPHTLFTPRSLEVLFQGPGSPPLKECPPCAAPDLLG GPSVFIFPPKIKDVLMISLSPMVTCVVVDVSEDDPDVQI SWFVNNVEVHTAQTQTHREDYNSTLRVVSALPIQHQD WMSGKEFKCKVNNRALPSPIEKTISKPRGPVRAPQVY VLPPPAEEMTKKEFSLTCMITGFLPAEIAVDWTSNGRT EQNYKNTATVLDSDGSYFMYSKLRVQKSTWERGSLF ACSVVHEGLHNHLTTKTISRSLGK

TABLE 5 Sequences of cynomolgus cKIT protein Amino acid sequence in one letter code, signal peptide underlined SEQ ID Construct Cynomolgus monkey cKIT , residues 25-520-TAG NO Cynomolgus MYRMQLLSCIALSLALVTNSQPSVSPGEPSPPSIHPAKSELIVRVGNEIRLLCID (SEQ ID monkey PGFVKWTFEILDETNENKQNEWITEKAEATNTGKYTCTNKHGLSSSIYVFVR NO: 177) cKIT D1-5 DPAKLFLVDRSLYGKEDNDTLVRCPLTDPEVTSYSLKGCQGKPLPKDLRFVP DPKAGITIKSVKRAYHRLCLHCSADQEGKSVLSDKFILKVRPAFKAVPVVSV SKASYLLREGEEFTVTCTIKDVSSSVYSTWKRENSQTKLQEKYNSWHHGDF NYERQATLTISSARVNDSGVFMCYANNTFGSANVTTTLEVVDKGFINIFPMIN TTVFVNDGENVDLIVEYEAFPKPEHQQWIYMNRTFTDKWEDYPKSENESNIR YVSELHLTRLKGTEGGTYTFLVSNSDVNASIAFNVYVNTKPEILTYDRLVNG MLQCVAAGFPEPTIDWYFCPGTEQRCSASVLPVDVQTLNASGPPFGKLVVQS SIDSSAFKHNGTVECKAYNDVGKTSAYFNFAFKGNNKEQIHPHTLFTPRSHH HHHH Expression of Recombinant cKIT Proteins

The desired cKIT recombinant proteins were expressed in HEK293 derived cell lines (293FS) previously adapted to suspension culture and grown in serum-free medium FreeStyle-293 (Gibco, catalogue #12338018). Both small scale and large scale protein production were via transient transfection and was performed in multiple shaker flasks (Nalgene), up to 1 L each, with 293Fectin® (Life Technologies, catalogue #12347019) as a plasmid carrier. Total DNA and 293Fectin was used at a ratio of 1:1.5 (w:v). DNA to culture ratio was 1 mg/L. The cell culture supernatants were harvested 3-4 days post transfection, centrifuged and sterile filtered prior to purification.

Example 5: Purification of Human, Cyno, Mouse and Rat cKIT ECD Protein, and of cKIT Subdomains 1-3, and 4-5

Tagged Protein Purification

Recombinant Fc-tagged cKIT extracellular domain proteins (e.g., human cKIT ECD-Fc, human cKIT (ECD subdomains 1-3, 4-5)-Fc, cyno cKIT-mFc, rat cKIT-mFc, mouse cKIT-mFc) were purified from the cell culture supernatant. The clarified supernatant was passed over a Protein A Sepharose® column which had been equilibrated with PBS. After washing to baseline, the bound material was eluted with Pierce Immunopure® low pH Elution Buffer, or 100 mM glycine (pH 2.7) and immediately neutralized with ⅛^(th) the elution volume of 1 M Tris pH 9.0. The pooled protein was concentrated if necessary using Amicon® Ultra 15 mL centrifugal concentrators with 10 kD or 30 kD nominal molecular weight cut-offs. The pools were then purified by SEC using a Superdex® 200 26/60 column to remove aggregates. The purified protein was then characterized by SDS-PAGE and SEC-MALLS (Multi-angle laser light scattering). Concentration was determined by absorbance at 280 nm, using the theoretical absorption coefficients calculated from the sequence by Vector NTI.

Example 6: Binding of cKIT Abs to cKIT ECD Subdomains

To help define the binding sites of the cKIT Abs, the human cKIT ECD was divided into subdomains 1-3 (ligand binding domain) and subdomains 4-5 (dimerization domain) To determine which subdomains were bound, a sandwich ELISA assay was employed. 1 μg/ml of ECD diluted in 1× Phosphate buffered saline corresponding to cKIT subdomains 1-3, subdomains 4-5 or full-length cKIT ECD were coated on 96 well Immulon® 4-HBX plates (Thermo Scientific Cat #3855, Rockford, IL) and incubated overnight at 4° C. Plates were washed three times with wash buffer (1× Phosphate buffered saline (PBS) with 0.01% Tween-20 (Bio-Rad 101-0781)). Plates were blocked with 280 μl/well 3% Bovine Serum Albumin diluted in 1×PBS for 2 hrs at room temperature. Plates were washed three times with wash buffer. Antibodies were prepared at 2 μg/ml in wash buffer with 5-fold dilutions for 8 points and added to ELISA plates at 100 μl/well in triplicate. Plates were incubated on an orbital shaker shaking at 200 rpm for 1 hr at room temperature. Assay plates were washed three times with wash buffer. Secondary antibody F(ab′)2 Fragment Goat anti-human IgG (H+L) (Jackson Immunoresearch Cat #109-036-088, West Grove, PA) was prepared 1:10,000 in wash buffer and added to ELISA plates at 100 μl/well. Plates were incubated with secondary antibody for 1 hr at room temperature shaking at 200 rpm on an orbital shaker. Assay plates were washed three times with wash buffer. To develop the ELISA signal, 100 μl/well of Sure Blue® TMB substrate (KPL Cat #52-00-03, Gaithersburg, MD) was added to plates and allowed to incubate for 10 mins at room temperature. To stop the reaction 50 μl of IN Hydrochloric Acid was added to each well. Absorbance was measured at 450 nM using a Molecular Devices SpectraMax® M5 plate reader. To determine the binding response of each antibody the optical density measurements were averaged, standard deviation values generated and graphed using Excel. The binding domains of each individual anti-cKIT antibody is found in Table 7 below.

Example 7: Affinity Measurements of cKIT Abs

Affinity of the antibodies to cKIT species orthologues and also to cKIT was determined using SPR technology using a Biacore® 2000 instrument (GE Healthcare, Pittsburgh, PA) and with CM5 sensor chips.

Briefly, HBS-P (0.01 M HEPES, pH 7.4, 0.15 M NaCl, 0.005% Surfactant P20) supplemented with 2% Odyssey® blocking buffer (Li-Cor Biosciences, Lincoln, NE) was used as the running buffer for all the experiments. The immobilization level and analyte interactions were measured by response unit (RU). Pilot experiments were performed to test and confirm the feasibility of the immobilization of the anti-human Fc antibody (Catalog number BR100839, GE Healthcare, Pittsburgh, PA) and the capture of the test antibodies.

For kinetic measurements, the experiments were performed in which the antibodies were captured to the sensor chip surface via the immobilized anti-human Fc antibody and the ability of the cKIT proteins to bind in free solution was determined. Briefly, 25 μg/ml of anti-human Fc antibody at pH 5 was immobilized on a CM5 sensor chip through amine coupling at flow rate of 5 μl/minute on all two flow cells to reach 10,500 RUs. 0.1-1 μg/ml of test antibodies were then injected at 10 μl/min for 1 minute. Captured levels of the antibodies were generally kept below 200 RUs. Subsequently, 3.125 −50 nM of cKIT receptor extracellular domains (ECD) were diluted in a 2-fold series and injected at a flow rate of 40 μl/min for 3 min over both reference and test flow cells. Table of tested ECDs is listed below (Table 6). Dissociation of the binding was followed for 10 min. After each injection cycle, the chip surface was regenerated with 3 M MgCl₂ at 10 μl/min for 30 seconds. All experiments were performed at 25° C. and the response data were globally fitted with a simple 1:1 interaction model (using Scrubber 2 ® software version 2.0b (BioLogic Software) to obtain estimates of on rate (k_(a)), off-rate (k_(d)) and affinity (K_(D)).

TABLE 6 ECD isotype and source ECD Isotype Tag Source Human C-terminal 6x His Novartis construct Cyno C-terminal 6x His Novartis construct Mouse C-terminal 6x His Sino Biological Inc (Catalog number: 50530-M08H) Rat C-terminal mFc Novartis construct

Table 7 lists the domain binding and affinity. As shown in the Table, the antibodies 9p3, NEG024, NEG027, NEG085, NEG086, NEG087, 20376 and 20507 all react with human cKIT at the nanomolar level, and have similar affinities for those tested against cynomolgus monkey ECD. However, only 20376 cross reacted with mouse. None of the antibodies tested cross-reacted with rat cKIT.

TABLE 7 antibody affinity and cross reactivity Affinity Affinity Affinity Affinity to Domain human cyno cKIT mouse cKIT rat cKIT Ab binding cKIT (nM) (nM) (nM) (nM) 9P3 d1-3 20    not Not reactive Not reactive determined NEG024 d1-3 1.31 1.15 Not reactive Not reactive NEG026 d1-3 not not Not reactive Not reactive determined determined NEG027 d1-3 1.34 not Not reactive Not reactive determined NEG085 d1-3 8.4  6.14 Not reactive Not reactive NEG086 d1-3 1.44 1.34 Not reactive Not reactive NEG087 d1-3 1.13 1.39 Not reactive Not reactive 20376 d1-3 9.1  4.8  2.5 Not reactive 20507 d1-3 1.8  0.56 Not reactive Not reactive

Example 8: Epitope Mapping of cKIT to 9P3 Antibody by Deuterium Exchange Mass Spectrometry (HDx-MS)

Deuterium exchange mass spectrometry (HDx-MS) measures the deuterium uptake on the amide backbone of a protein. These measurements are sensitive to the amide's solvent accessibility and to changes in the hydrogen bonding network of the backbone amides. HDx-MS is often used to compare proteins in two different states, such as apo and ligand-bound, and coupled with rapid digestion with pepsin. In such experiments one can locate regions, typically of 10 to 15 amino acids, that show differential deuterium uptake between two different states. Regions that are protected are either directly involved in ligand binding or allosterically affected by binding of the antibody to the ligand.

In these experiments, the deuterium uptake of cKIT extra-cellular domain (SEQ ID NO:178, see below) was measured in the absence and presence of the anti-cKIT antibody, 9P3. Regions in cKIT that show a decrease in deuterium uptake upon binding of the antibody are likely to be involved in the epitope; however, due to the nature of the measurement it is also possible to detect changes remote from the direct binding site (allosteric effects). Usually, the regions that have the greatest amount of protection are involved in direct binding although this may not always be the case. In order to delineate direct binding events from allosteric effects orthogonal measurements (e. g. X-ray crystallography, alanine mutagenesis) are necessary.

TABLE 8 cKIT extra-cellular domain construct SEQ ID NO: 178 LENGTH: 503 amino acids TYPE: Protein ORGANISM: Human QPSVSPGEPSPPSIHPGKSDLIVRVGDEIRLLCTDPGFVKWTFEILDETN ENKQNEWITEKAEATNTGKYTCTNKHGLSNSIYVFVRDPAKLFLVDRSLY GKEDNDTLVRCPLTDPEVTNYSLKGCQGKPLPKDLRFIPDPKAGIMIKSV KRAYHRLCLHCSVDQEGKSVLSEKFILKVRPAFKAVPVVSVSKASYLLRE GEEFTVTCTIKDVSSSVYSTWKRENSQTKLQEKYNSWHHGDFNYERQATL TISSARVNDSGVFMCYANNTFGSANVTTTLEVVDKGFINIFPMINTTVFV NDGENVDLIVEYEAFPKPEHQQWIYMNRTFTDKWEDYPKSENESNIRYVS ELHLTRLKGTEGGTYTFLVSNSDVNAAIAFNVYVNTKPEILTYDRLVNGM LQCVAAGFPEPTIDWYFCPGTEQRCSASVLPVDVQTLNSSGPPFGKLVVQ SSIDSSAFKHNGTVECKAYNDVGKTSAYFNFAFKEQIHPHTLFTPRSHHH HHH

The cKIT epitope mapping experiments are performed on a Waters Synapt® G2 HDx-MS platform, which includes LEAP® robot system, nanoACQUITY® UPLC System, and Synapt® G2 mass spectrometer. In this method, triplicate control experiments are carried out as follows. 300 pmol (1.4 mg/ml) of cKIT antigen is diluted into 110 μl of 95% deuterated PBS buffer (pH 7.4) and incubates at room temperature on a bench rotator for 25 minutes (% D=85.5%). Deuterium exchange is quenched by 1:1 dilution with cold quench buffer (6M Urea and 1M TCEP pH=2.5) on ice for 5 min. After quenching the tube is transferred onto a LEAP system (Thermo box is set at 2° C.) and the quenched sample is injected by the LEAP system onto the UPLC system for analysis. The UPLC system incorporates an immobilized pepsin column 2.1 mm×30 mm (Life Technologies 2-3131-00) that is maintained at 12° C. An 8-minute 2 to 35% acetonitrile gradient and Waters UPLC CSH C18 1.0×100 mm column is used for separation. Next, triplicate experiments are carried out using the antibody. 300 pmol of 9P3 antibody is immobilized on Protein G agarose beads (Thermo Scientific Cat #22851) using standard techniques. Briefly, the antibody is centrifuged to remove a storage buffer. Then 200 μl of PBS buffer (pH 7.4) and 300 pmol of cKIT are added to the immobilized Ab and incubate for 30 min at room temperature. After incubation, the complex is centrifuged and washed with 200 μl PBS buffer and centrifuged again. For deuterium exchange, 200 of deuterated PBS is added to the antigen-antibody complex for incubation at room temperature for 25 minutes (% D=85.5%). Deuterium buffer is then removed, and immediately, 125 μl ice cold quench buffer is added. After quenching for 5 minutes, the column is centrifuged and the flow-through is transferred into a prechilled HPLC vial. The sample is analyzed using the same on-line pepsin digestion/LC-MS setup as the control experiment.

The results of these measurements are summarized in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 . FIG. 1 shows the baseline corrected differences between the control and 9P3 antibody bound sample divided by the standard error in the measurement. In this plot the more negative value indicates a greater amount of protection in a given region upon binding of 9P3 antibody to cKIT antigen. Upon binding of 9P3 to cKIT we observe the most significant amounts of protection in the following two regions of cKIT: VFVRDPAKLFL ((Region 1, 109-119 (SEQ ID NO: 179)) and HCSVDQEGKSVLSE ((Region 2, 185-198 (SEQ ID NO:180)). Region 1 comprises residues 109-119 and is part of the D1 and D2 domains. Region 2 comprises residues 185-198 and is part of the D2 domain. In FIG. 2 , we have mapped the two most protected regions (see FIG. 1 ) onto the crystal structure of cKIT extra-cellular domain (PDB ID 2e9w). In addition, we have also labeled the SCF binding sites on cKIT as site I, II, and III using literature values (Yuzawa et al., Cell 2007; 130: 323-334). There are two key findings from FIG. 2 . First, regions 1 and 2 are very close together in the crystal structure even though they are far apart in primary sequence space. This observation suggests that both could potentially be part of the epitope and if so, the epitope for 9P3 is discontinuous. Second, regions 1 and 2 are remote from the SCF ligand binding sites reported in literature. This is an important observation because it suggests that 9P3 antibody does not directly interfere with ligand binding. Instead the antibody might sterically interfere with ligand binding and/or with the dimerization of the receptor upon ligand binding. In separate competition assays, using ELISA and FACS we observed partial blocking of SCF binding to cKIT by 9P3 so there appears to be partial steric interference. In conclusion, the HDx-MS data indicate that the epitope for 9P3 antibody consists of a discontinuous epitope that is remote from the SCF binding sites. NEG024, NEG085, NEG086, NEG027 and NEG087 are expected to have the same mechanism of action.

Example 9. Epitope Mapping of NEG085

In Situ Limited Proteolysis

Human cKIT (accession code NM_000222 domain 1 (D1)-domain 3 (D3) extracellular domain (ECD) protein was made with residues Q26-G311 (N1305, N145S- these changes results in glycosylation deficiency, in order to express the protein in a glycan free form). Equal molar ratios of human cKIT D1-D3 ECD and NEG085 Fab were mixed and subjected to a final gel filtration step equilibrated with 20 mM Tris-HCl pH 7.5 and 100 mM NaCl, and concentrated to 20 mg/ml. Trypsin was added to the protein complex crystallization sample to create a 1:100 w/w dilution. The protease/sample mixture was incubated at room temperature for 30 minutes before setting up the crystallization experiment.

Crystallization

Diffracting crystals of the cKIT ECD/NEG085 Fab complex were obtained directly from Protein Complex Suite F5 (0.1M NaCl, 0.1M Tris pH 8.0, 8% PEG 20 k; Qiagen) at 4° C. and, after minor optimization, led to crystals diffracting to 5 Å in-house. Crystals used for data collection grew at 4° C. by equilibrating equal volumes of protein (20 mg/mL) and reservoir solution (0.1M NaCl, 0.1M Tris pH 8.0, 10% PEG 20 k) by the sitting-drop vapor diffusion method. Before data collection, crystals were cryoprotected in reservoir solution containing 30% glycerol and flash cooled in liquid nitrogen.

Data Collection

Data were collected on a single crystal cooled to 100K using an ADSC QUANTUM 315 detector (ADSC, Poway CA) and synchrotron radiation (λ=1.0000 Å) at the beam line 5.0.2 of the Advanced Light Source. Crystals of cKIT ECD/NEG085 Fab diffracted to 3.1 Å resolution and belonged to the space group C2 with unit cell parameters a=213.76 Å, b=117.48 Å, c=171.92 Å, α=90°, β=118.47°, γ=90°. The crystal contains four copies of the cKIT ECD/NEG085 Fab complex in the asymmetric unit with a calculated solvent content of 66%. Data were processed using autoPROC® (Global Phasing Ltd, Cambridge UK).

Structure Determination and Refinement

The structure of the cKIT ECD/NEG085 Fab complex was solved at 3.1 Å resolution by molecular replacement with PHASER (McCoy et al., J. Appl. Crystallogr. 2007; 40(4): 658-74) using the published crystal structure of the cKIT ECD (PDB ID code: 2EC8) (Yuzawa et al., Cell 2007; 130 (2):323-34) and anti-α1β1 integrin I Fab (PDB ID code: 1MHP) (Karpusas et al., J. Mol. Biol. 2003; 327 (5):1031-41) as starting models. CDR loops of the NEG085 Fab fragment were manually rebuilt in COOT (Emsley and Cowtan, Acta Crystallogr. D. Biol. Crystallogr. 2004; 60 (12): 2126-32) using simulated annealing composite omit map implemented in Phenix (Adams et al., Acta Crystallogr. D. Biol. Crystallogr. 2010; 66(2): 213-21). Subsequent rounds of model building and refinement with Phenix refine program were carried out until convergence.

Results: Structure of the Human cKIT D1-D2 in Complex with Fab Fragment of NEG085

The cKIT D1-D3/NEG085 Fab co-structure demonstrates that NEG085 recognizes and binds to the extracellular membrane-distal domain of cKIT by specifically interacting with a large number of residues contained within the domains 1, 2 and the linker residues between them. The cKIT epitope recognized by NEG085 can therefore be defined as:

-   -   cKIT domain 1 residues: R49, V50     -   cKIT domain 2 residues: Q152, G153, H185 and loop Q190-E198     -   Linker between domain 1 and 2: D113-L117         NEG085 binds cKIT D1-D2 using all CDRs (H1-H3 and L1-L3) (FIG. 3         ). FIG. 3 is a representation of the 3.1-Å crystal structure of         the Kit D1-D2/NEG085 Fab complex showing the Fab heavy chains         (dark grey), Fab light chains (white), and Kit D1-D2 (light         grey) domains Epitopes and paratopes are colored black. The         NEG085/cKIT interface buries a total of ˜1890 Å2         solvent-accessible surface area (1211 Å2 and 679 Å2 from H chain         and L chain, respectively). The epitope is centered on the cKIT         D1-D2 linker region D113-L117 ((DPAKL) (SEQ ID NO: 181)) and         loop Q190-E198 ((QEGKSVLSE) (SEQ ID NO: 182)) these residues are         bolded and underlined in Table 4, SEQ ID NO: 173 (above). It is         noted that these epitiopes are discontinuous in primary         sequence, but are very close together in the crystal structure.         These epitope interactions are supplemented by peripheral         interactions with R49, V50, Q152, G153, and H185. The         intermolecular interactions between cKIT D1-D2 and NEG085 Fab         were examined using the PISA (Protein Interfaces, Surfaces and         Assemblies) (Krissinel and Henrick, J. Mol. Biol. 2007,         372(3):774-97). This data is shown in Table 9.

Superposition of cKIT in the dimeric cKIT/SCF signaling complex (Yuzawa et al. Cell 2007; 130 (2); 323-34) and cKIT/NEG085 complex shows that NEG085 and SCF appear to not compete with each other for binding to cKIT. NEG085 binds to an epitope that is distinct from the binding epitopes responsible for SCF binding. Therefore, the binding of NEG085 to cKIT would not compete directly for association for SCF.

TABLE 9 NEG085 L chain Kit D1-D2 Distance (Å) Hydrogen bonds and salt bridges Ser31 OG Arg49 NH2 3.6 Tyr32 OH Gln190 NE2 2.5 Arg53 NH2 Asp113 OD1 3.2 Gly91 O Lys193 NZ 2.9 Arg92 NH1 Glu191 OE2 3.0 Arg92 NH1 Glu191 OE1 3.1 Arg92 O Lys193 NZ 3.1 Leu94 N Lys193 NZ 3.5 Trp95 Lys193 Cation-pi van der Waals contacts Tyr50 Pro114 Tyr53 Val50, Pro114 Arg93 Lys193 NEG085 H chain Kit D1-D2 Distance (Å) Hydrogen bonds and salt bridges Tyr33 OH Ser194 N 3.1 Tyr33 OH Ser194 O 2.4 Asn52 ND2 Ser194 OG 3.2 Tyr59 OH Gly192 O 3.2 Tyr59 OH Ser194 N 3.1 Tyr101 OH Glu198 OE2 2.6 Gly103 O Leu117 N 3.4 Gly103 N Leu196 O 3.0 Thr105 N Pro114 O 2.9 Trp107 NE1 Gln190 OE1 3.1 Trp107 NE1 Lys193 Cation-pi van der Waals contacts Tyr53 Leu196 Pro54 Gln152, Gly153 Ser57 Ser194 Tyr59 Lys193 Tyr102 His185, Leu196, Ser197, Lys199 Thr104 Pro114 Thr105 Pro114, Gln190 Tyr106 Pro114, Ala115 Trp107 Ser194, Val195

NEG085 Fab VH and VL residues are numbered based upon its linear amino acid sequence. cKIT residues are numbered base upon accession code NM_000222. The intermolecular interactions were examined using the PISA (Protein Interfaces, Surfaces and Assemblies) (Krissinel and Henrick, J. Mol. Biol. 2007, 372(3):774-97).

Example 10: cKIT Ab-Mediated Internalization of Surface cKIT on GIST-T1 Cells as Determined by Flow Cytometry

The kinetics of cKIT antibody mediated internalization was evaluated by treating with antibody in a cell monolayer using a temperature shift method and flow cytometry readout. GIST-T1 (kindly provided by Dr. Takahiro Taguchi, Kochi U., Japan) cells were seeded at 2.5×10E5 cells/well in five 12-well tissue culture treated plates (BD Falcon 353043). The cells were incubated in a tissue culture incubator at 37° C. with 5% CO₂ overnight. The following day medium was removed and replaced with 450 μl fresh medium. The cKIT antibodies NEG085, 20376 and an isotype control were prepared at 10×10 μg/ml concentration in appropriate cell culture medium and 50 μl of test cKIT antibody or isotype was added per well with final concentration of 10 μg/ml. All cells were incubated for 1 hr on ice, followed by two washes with 1 mL 1× Phosphate buffered saline (PBS) and resuspended in 500 μl cell culture medium. Plates #2-5 were transferred to 37° C. and harvested at time points; 30 min, 2 hr, 4 hr and 24 hr at 37° C. with 5% CO₂. 100 μl of cell dissociation buffer (Gibco Cat #13150-016, Life Technologies, Carlsbad, CA) was added to plate #1 (4° C. binding control) and incubated at 37° C. until cells were detached. Cells were neutralized with 100 μl of medium and transferred to a 96 well V-bottom tissue culture treated plate (Costar 3894). Cells were centrifuged and washed twice with FACS Buffer (1× Phosphate Buffered Saline, 2% Fetal Bovine Serum, 0.1% Sodium Azide). The Phycocrythrin conjugated goat anti-human IgG secondary Ab (Invitrogen H10104, Life Technologies, Carlsbad, CA) was prepared at a 1 to 100 ratio in FACS buffer. Secondary antibody was added to cells at 100 μl/well and incubated with cells on ice for 45 min. At the end of the incubation period, cells were centrifuged and washed with FACS Buffer three times. Cells were fixed with 100 μl/well of 1% paraformaldehyde and stored at 4° C. in the dark. Repeat cell disassociation, secondary antibody incubation and fixation steps for the cells incubated at 37° C. for the various time points. The following day, all samples were analyzed using the BD FACSCanto II 0 equipment using a HTS system (BD Biosciences, San Jose, CA). Samples were analyzed with FlowJo software to obtain the Geometric Mean values of fluorescence for the Phycoerythrin channel, FIG. 4A is a plot of % of initial cell surface binding vs Geometric Mean-PE 4° C. binding/Geometric Mean-PE timepoint at 37° C.×100. As demonstrated in FIG. 4A, both antibodies NEG085 and 20376 bind cKIT on the cell surface and are rapidly internalized into the cell. This indicates that the cKIT ADCs disclosed would be rapidly internalized, thus delivering the toxin into the cell efficiently.

In another internalization experiment, the impact of NEG085 on cKIT receptor levels was evaluated on human bone marrow cells. Normal human CD34+ bone marrow cells (All Cells, Cat #ABM022F, Emeryville, CA) were thawed and washed with 10 mL of StemPro®-34 SFM medium (Gibco, Life Technologies, Carlsbad, CA). Cells were resuspended in 1.25 mL of StemPro-34 SFM medium at 4×10⁵ cells/mL and split equally into two tubes. One tube was untreated, and the other was treated with 10 μg/ml of NEG085 and both were incubated at 37° C., 5% CO₂. 100 μL of cell suspension was collected at each timepoint (0, 15, 30, 60, 120, and 240 min) from each condition, and placed into an ice cold collection tube to cease internalization. Cells were washed with 3 mL of ice-cold FBS stain buffer and resuspended in 100 μL of FBS stain buffer. 5 mL of 104D2-BV421 (mouse anti-human IgG1 k, Biolegend, San Diego CA) was added to each tube and incubated on ice for 1 hour. Following another wash with FBS stain buffer, total cKIT receptors were measured by flow cytometry by assessing the mean fluorescence intensity of BV421 on a FACS Canto II® (BD Biosciences, San Jose, CA).

As shown in FIG. 4B, cKIT is rapidly internalized upon binding of NEG085, with the bulk of the internalization happening rapidly (15 minutes) and then continuing to steadily decline the amount of cKIT on the surface until the endpoint of 4 hours.

Example 11: Evaluation of ADCC Activity In Vitro

The ability of the unconjugated anti-cKIT antibodies (NEG085, 20376) to mediate antibody dependent cellular cytotoxicity was determined versus Uke-1 cells (target cells; generously provided by Professor Walter Fiedler, University Hospital Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany) in co-incubation with NK3.3 cells (killer cells or effector cells; kindly provided by Jacky Kornbluth from Saint Louis University). In brief, Uke-1 cells were stained with Calcein acetoxy-methyl ester (Calcein-AM; Sigma-Aldrich catalog #17783-5MG, St. Louis, MO), washed twice, pipetted into a 96-well microtiterplate (96 well, U-bottomed, clear plastic; Corning Costar, catalog #650 160, Tewksbury, MA) at a concentration of 5000 cells per well and pre-incubated for 10 min with a serial dilution of the above mentioned antibodies (from 50,000 to 0.003 μg per ml) before adding the effector NK3.3 cells for 1 hour in an effector to target ratio of 20 to 1. In order to calculate the antibody specific lysis of the target cells, a parallel incubation of target cells only without antibody or effector cells served as a baseline and negative control, whereas the positive control or maximal lysis or hundred percent specific lysis was determined by lysis of target cells only with a 1% Triton-X 100 solution. As an additional positive control, MabCampath® (Sanofi, Paris, FR) was used, recognizing CD52 on the Uke-1 cells. Following a co-incubation of target and effector cells, the microtiterplate was centrifuged and an aliquot of the supernatant fluid was transferred to another microtiterplate (96 well, flat-bottomed, black with clear bottom; (Corning Costar, catalog #3904, Tewksbury, MA) and the concentration of free Calcein in solution was determined with a fluorescence counter (Victor 3 ® multilabel counter, Perkin Elmer, Waltham, MA).

Results are presented in FIG. 5 . Antibody Dependent Cell Mediated Cytotoxicity (ADCC) is a mechanism of cell mediated immunity, whereby an effector cell lyses a target cell that has been bound by specific antibodies. In this experiment, MabCampath® as well as the anti-cKIT antibodies 20376 and NEG085 are unconjugated human IgG1 antibodies. As shown in FIG. 5 , only the MabCampath® antibody mediated ADCC killing of the target cells. Both 20376 and NEG085 were not able to induce ADCC, even at higher concentrations. As such, any cell killing seen when one of the ADCs is used, for example, NEG085-5B, is not due to an ADCC mechanism of action.

Example 12: The Ability of NEG085 and 20376 to Cause Mast Cell Apoptosis was Investigated Using Primary Human Mast Cells

Primary human mast cells were cultured from peripheral human blood according to the methods described by Saito et al., Nature Protocols 2006; 1(4):2178-2183. Mast cells, which had been in liquid culture for a minimum of one week, were incubated with increasing concentrations (0.05-100 nM) of the anti-human cKIT Abs, NEG085 and 20376, or an isotype control IgG, in the presence of 1.6 nM rhSCF (Genscript, Cat #Z00400, Piscataway, NJ), for 48 h at 37° C. before the addition of the Caspase-Glo® 3/7 reagent (Promega, Cat #G8093, Madison, WI) to measure apoptosis. Following 30 min incubation at room temperature, luminescence was recorded on the BioTek® Synergy plate reader (BioTek, Winooski, VT).

As cKIT is expressed on mast cells, any therapeutic anti cKIT antibodies should not cause depletion of mast cells. FIG. 6 shows an apoptosis assay with primary human mast cells following treatment with either anti-human cKIT Abs or an isotype control Ab, in the presence of 1.6 nM rhSCF. Primary human mast cells were incubated with increasing concentrations of the anti cKIT antibodies, NEG085 and 20376, or an isotype control IgG. As seen in FIG. 6 , both the NEG085 and 20376 unconjugated antibodies do not lead to apoptosis of human primary mast cells ex vivo.

Example 13: The Ability of NEG085 and 20376 to Mediate Mast Cell Degranulation was Determined Using Primary Human Mast Cells

Primary human mast cells were cultured from peripheral human blood according to the methods described by Saito et al., (supra). Mast cells, which had been in liquid culture for a minimum of one week, were pre-treated with 5% Ag-specific IgE JW8 (in-house batch ACE 27283), 95% non-specific monoclonal human IgE (Abbiotec, Cat #12030635, San Diego, CA) and 10 ng/mL rhIL-4 (R&D Systems Cat #204-IL, Minneapolis, MN) for 5 days at 37° C. The cells were then incubated with increasing concentrations (0.05-100 nM) of an isotype control IgG, the anti-human cKIT Abs, 20376 and NEG085, the anti-IgE Ab, LE27, or the NIP(5)BSA antigen, in the presence of a goat anti-human IgG (H+L) Fc-specific Ab (Jackson ImmunoResearch, Cat #109-005-008-JIR, West Grove, PA) for 90 min at 37° C. Cells were then centrifuged and the supernatants were transferred into 96-well black-walled plates prior to the addition of the β-hexosaminidase substrate. Following 90 min incubation at 37° C., the reaction was stopped by the addition of tris-base (Sigma, Cat #T1503-500G, pH 12, St. Louis, MO) and the fluorescence intensity was recorded on the Envision® plate reader.

As in the previous experiment in Example 12, it is important to assess any detrimental effect of anti-cKIT antibodies on mast cells. Where the previous experiment examined apoptosis of mast cells, here the experiments are directed to mast cell degranulation. As shown in FIG. 7 , the positive controls NIP(5) and LE27 show high levels of mast cell degranulation. In contrast, anti-cKIT antibodies NEG085 and 20376 do not induce mast cell degranulation of human primary mast cells ex vivo.

Example 14: Dose Dependent In Vivo Efficacy of an Anti-cKIT ADCs Conjugated with an Eg5 Inhibitor Against Small Cell Lung Cancer (SCLC) in Mice

The dose dependent anti-tumor efficacy of the anti-cKIT antibody 20507 conjugated to Eg5 inhibitor 5B (20507-5B) was evaluated in the cKIT positive NCI-H526 SCLC tumor xenograft model in mice. For the structure of the Eg5 inhibitor 5B, see Table 1. Female SCID-beige mice were implanted subcutaneously with 10×10⁶ cells containing 50% Matrigel™ (BD Biosciences) in Hank's balanced salt solution. The total injection volume containing cells in suspension was 200 μl. Mice were enrolled in the study 13 days post implantation with average tumor volume of ˜182 mm³-270 mm³. After being randomly assigned to one of six groups (n=5/group), mice were administered a single i.v. dose of tris buffer (the antibody/ADC vehicle), a non-specific isotype control (anti-glycoprotein H-5B at 16 mg/kg), 20507-5B (1.6, 3.2 or 6.5 mg/kg), or unconjugated 20507 (10 mg/kg). Tumor volumes and body weights were measured at least twice weekly (FIGS. 8A and 8B, Table 10). The non-specific isotype control was not active at 16 mg/kg. On Day 21, mice treated with 1.6 or 3.2 mg/kg 20507-5B or 10 mg/kg unconjugated 20507 had tumors that showed a percent mean change in tumor volume compared to the vehicle (tris buffer treated) control (%4T/ΔC) of 77, 62, and 96%, respectively. The mice treated with 20507-5B at 6.5 mg/kg had tumors that showed a −21% regression in volume. The treatments were well tolerated at all dose levels.

TABLE 10 20507-5B dose response in the cKIT positive NCI-H526 SCLC xenograft model on Day 21 Tumor Response Mean change Host Response of tumor Mean change Mean volume vs of tumor change of Survival control Regression volume body weight (survivors/ Drug Dose Schedule (ΔT/ΔC) (%) (%) (mm3 ± SEM) (% ± SEM) total) Vehicle   0 mg/kg Single 100  — 1390 ± 46  7.8 ± 1.2 5/5 Dose IV Anti-  16 mg/kg Single 97 — 1355 ± 244 3.6 ± 1.3 5/5 glycoprotein Dose IV H-5B 20507-5B 1.6 mg/kg Single 77 — 1065 ± 172 5.0 ± 1.3 5/5 Dose IV 20507-5B 3.2 mg/kg Single 62 —  868 ± 221 2.1 ± 1.0 5/5 Dose IV 20507-5B 6.5 mg/kg Single — −21 −40 ± 38   − ± 1.2 5/5 Dose IV 20507  10 mg/kg Single 96 — 1330 ± 49  8.2 ± 1.2 5/5 (unconjugated) Dose IV

Example 15: Efficacy in Mice with c-KIT Positive H526 Small Cell Lung Cancer and SKOV3ip c-KIT Negative Ovarian Xenograft Models as a Dual Implant to Demonstrate Specificity

Evaluation of the specificity of anti-cKIT antibody 20507 conjugated to Eg5 inhibitor 5B (20507-5B) was evaluated using a dual implant system with a HER2+, cKIT- ovarian xenograft model, SKOV3ip, and a HER2-, cKIT+SCLC xenograft model, NCI-H526. As a control, a second set of mice with this dual tumor implant were treated with an anti-Her2 antibody called TBS conjugated to 5B (TBS-5B). TBS is a Trastuzumab-like anti-Her2 antibody with the identical sequence as Trastuzumab, but was produced for experimental purposes and is not clinical material. Female SCID-beige mice were implanted subcutaneously on the right flank with 5×10⁶ SKOV3ip cells and 10×10⁶ NCI-H526 cells on the left flank, both containing 50% Matrigel™ (BD Biosciences) in Hank's balanced salt solution with a total injection volume of 200 μl containing cells in suspension for each cell line. Differences in growth kinetics were accounted for by staggering implant dates. Mice were enrolled in the with an average tumor volume of ˜94⁻277 mm³. Mice were randomly assigned to one of 4 groups/xenograft model, with n=8/group. Mice were administered a single i.v. dose of ADC vehicle (tris buffer), a non-specific isotype control (anti-glycoprotein H-5B at 10 mg/kg), 20507-5B (6.5 mg/kg), or TBS-5B (10.0 mg/kg). Tumor volumes and body weights were measured at least twice weekly (FIG. 9 ). As expected, the treatments were well tolerated at all dose levels and no body weight loss was observed (body weight data not shown). TBS-5B induced anti-tumor efficacy in SKOV3ip (HER2+, cKIT−) tumors, but had no effect on NCI-H526 (HER−, cKIT+) tumors. Likewise, 20507-5B exhibited anti-tumor efficacy against NCI-H526 (HER−, cKIT+) tumors, but not against SKOV3ip (HER2+, cKIT−) tumors demonstrating specificity in activity for both TBS-5B and 20507-5B.

Example 16: ADC Efficacy in Mice with Site Directed Conjugation at 5 and 10 Mu/Ku in c-KIT Positive NCI-H526 Small Cell Lung Cancer Xenograft Model

The anti-tumor activity of the anti-cKIT antibody 20507 with site directed conjugation to Eg5 inhibitor 5B was evaluated in the NCI-H526 small cell lung cancer xenograft model. Female nu/nu mice were implanted subcutaneously with 5×10⁶ cells containing 50% Matrigel™ (BD Biosciences) in Hank's balanced salt solution. The total injection volume containing cells in suspension was 200 Mice were enrolled in the study 11 days post implantation with an average tumor volume of ˜148 mm³⁻258 mm³ After being randomly assigned to one of 7 groups (n=5 or 6/group), mice were administered a single i.v. dose of tris buffer (the ADC vehicle), 20507-5B (5.9 or 11.8 mg/kg), 20507-HC-K360C-LC-K107C-5B (5 or 10 mg/kg), 20507- HC-E152C-S375C-5B (5 or 10 mg/kg). Tumor volumes and body weights were measured at least twice weekly (FIG. 10A/B and Table 11). As expected, the treatments were well tolerated at all dose levels and no body weight loss was observed (body weight data not shown). On Day 22, tumors in mice treated with 5.9 and 11.8 mg/kg of 20507-5B showed a %4T/AC of 63% and 24%, respectively. Tumors from mice treated with the 5 and 10 mg/kg of 20507-HC-K360C-LC-K107K-5B showed %4T/AC of 27% and 6%, respectively. Moreover, tumors from mice treated with 5 and 10 mg/kg of 20507-HC-E152C-S375C-5B showed a %4T/AC of 10% and 5%, respectively. On Day 25, 5 mg/kg of 20507-HC-E152C-S375C-5B showed significantly increased efficacy compared with 20507-HC-K360C-LC-K107C-5B at the same dose, with a p-value of <0.05 using a Hold-Sidak post test. Furthermore, on Day 28, 10 mg/kg of 20507-HC-E152C-S375C-5B and 20507-HC-K360C-LC-K107C-5B induced significantly increased efficacy compared to 11.8 mg/kg of 20507-5B, which was conjugated through partially reduced native disulfides, with a p-value of <0.05 using the Holm-Sidak post test.

TABLE 11 ADC efficacy with site directed conjugation at 5 and 10 mg/kg in the cKIT positive NCI-H526 SCLC xenograft model on Day 22 Tumor Response Mean change Host Response of tumor Mean change Mean volume vs of tumor change of Survival control (T/C) volume body weight (Survivors/ Drug Dose Schedule (%) (mm3 ± SEM) (% ± SEM) total) Vehicle   0 mg/kg Single 100 1961 ± 225 16.2 ± 2.0  6/6 Dose IV 20507-5B  5.9 mg/kg Single 63 1235 ± 325 14.9 ± 1.8  5/6 Dose IV 20507-5B 11.8 mg/kg Single 24 467 ± 65 5.2 ± 0.9 6/6 Dose IV 20507-HC-   5 mg/kg Single 27  535 ± 157 10.9 ± 2.0  6/6 K360C-LC- Dose IV K107K-5B 20507-HC-   10 mg/kg Single 6 113 ± 46 6.9 ± 1.0 6/6 K360C-LC- Dose IV K107K-5B 20507-HC-   5 mg/kg Single 10 195 ± 33 7.2 ± 1.4 6/6 E152C- Dose IV S375C-5B 20507-HC-   10 mg/kg Single 5 100 ± 24 7.8 ± 2.9 6/6 E152C- Dose IV S375C-5B

Example 17: ADC Efficacy in Mice Using Anti-c-KIT 20507 with Varying Eg5 Inhibitors in a c-KIT Positive NCI-H526 Small Cell Lung Cancer Xenograft Model at 5 and 10 mg/kg

The anti-cKIT antibody 20507 conjugated to Eg5 inhibitor 5B (20507-5B), 5E (20507-5E), 5F (20507-5F), 5C (20507-5C), 5A (20507-5A), and 5D (20507-5D) was evaluated in the c-KIT positive NCI-H526 small cell lung cancer xenograft model. For the structures of these Eg5 inhibitors, see Table 1. Female SCID-bg mice were implanted subcutaneously with 5×10⁶ NCI-H526 cells containing 50% Matrigel™ (BD Biosciences) in Hank's balanced salt solution. The total injection volume containing cells in suspension was 200 Mice were enrolled in the study 9 days post implantation with an average tumor volume of ˜132 mm³⁻249 mm³. After being randomly assigned to one of 13 groups (n=5 mice/group), mice were administered a single i.v. dose of tris buffer (the ADC vehicle), 20507-5B (5 or 10 mg/kg), 20507-5E (5 or 10 mg/kg), 20507-5F (5 or 10 mg/kg), 20507-5C (5 or 10 mg/kg), 20507-5A (5 or 10 mg/kg), or 20507-5D (5 or 10 mg/kg). Tumor volumes and body weights were measured at least twice weekly (FIGS. 11A and 11B). As expected, the treatments were well tolerated at all dose levels (FIG. 11A/B). On Day 24, tumors from mice treated with 5 or 10 mg/kg of 20507-5B showed a %ΔT/ΔC of 79% and 23%, respectively; The %ΔT/ΔC for 5 or 10 mg/kg of 20507-5E was 4%* and 5%*, respectively; for 5 and 10 mg/kg of 20507-5F the %ΔT/ΔC was 28 and 20%, respectively; for 5 and 10 mg/kg of 20507-5C the %ΔT/ΔC was 26% and 7%, respectively; for 5 and 10 mg/kg of 20507-5A the %4T/AC was 31% and 17%, respectively; mice treated with 20507-5D at 5 mg/kg had a 1% ΔT/ΔC*, while 10 mg/kg of 20507-5D regressed tumors by −31%*. Treatment groups labeled with * indicate significant activity (p-value <0.05) when compared with the vehicle control treated tumors using the ANOVA/Tukey's post test.

TABLE 12 Efficacy and body weight change of 20507 with varying linkers in NCI-H526 (SCLC) xenograft mouse model (*p < 0.05, ANOVA/Tukey's post test) at Day 24 Tumor Response Mean change Host Response of tumor Mean change Mean change volume of of Survival vs control Regression tumor volume body weight (Survivors/ Drug Dose Schedule (T/C) (%) (%) (mm3 ± SEM) (% ± SEM) total) Vehicle  0 mg/kg Single Dose 100 — 1132 ± 114 12.2 ± 1.9  5/5 IV 20507-5B  5 mg/kg Single Dose 76 —  859 ± 248 9.2 ± 2.6 5/5 IV 20507-5B 10 mg/kg Single Dose 23 — 264 ± 54 7.4 ± 1.1 5/5 IV 20507-5E  5 mg/kg Single Dose   4* —  41 ± 30 4.7 ± 1.0 5/5 IV 20507-5E 10 mg/kg Single Dose   5* —  59 ± 56 0.7 ± 1.3 5/5 IV 20507-5F  5 mg/kg Single Dose 28 — 315 ± 81 6.2 ± 1.6 5/5 IV 20507-5F 10 mg/kg Single Dose 20 — 221 ± 46 4.4 ± 0.9 5/5 IV 20507-5C  5 mg/kg Single Dose 26 —  289 ± 115 6.5 ± 1.5 5/5 IV 20507-5C 10 mg/kg Single Dose 7 —  78 ± 47 3.3 ± 1.4 5/5 IV 20507-5A  5 mg/kg Single Dose 31 —  352 ± 102 5.8 ± 1.8 5/5 IV 20507-5A 10 mg/kg Single Dose 17 — 192 ± 52 8.7 ± 2.2 5/5 IV 20507-5D  5 mg/kg Single Dose   1* —  6 ± 18 −1.3 ± 1.7  5/5 IV 20507-5D 10 mg/kg Single Dose — −30.84* −53 ± 11 6.3 ± 2.3 5/5 IV

Example 18: ADC Efficacy in Mice Using Anti-c-KIT 20507 with Site Directed Conjugation to Varying Eg5 Inhibitors in a c-KIT Positive NCI-H526 Small Cell Lung Cancer Xenograft Model at 5 and 10 mg/kg

The anti-cKIT antibody 20507 with different site directed conjugation to different Eg5 inhibitors was evaluated in the cKIT positive NCI-H526 small cell lung cancer xenograft model. Female SCID-bg mice were implanted subcutaneously with 5×10⁶ cells containing 50% Matrigel™ (BD Biosciences) in Hank's balanced salt solution. The total injection volume containing cells in suspension was 200 μl. Mice were enrolled in the study 8 days post implantation with an average tumor volume of ˜170 mm³⁻330 mm³. After being randomly assigned to one of 7 groups (n=6 mice/group), mice were administered a single i.v. dose of tris buffer alone (the ADC vehicle) or 10 mg/kg of ADC: TBS-HC-E152C-S375C-5B, 20507-HC-E152C-S375C-5B, TBS-HC-E152C-S375C-5E, 20507-HC-E152C-S375C-5E, TBS-HC-E152C-S375C-5D, or 20507-HC-E152C-S375C-5D. Tumor volumes and body weights were measured at least twice weekly (FIG. 12 ). As expected, the treatments were well tolerated at all dose levels and no body weight loss was observed (body weight data not shown). No efficacy was observed with the TBS ADCs targeting Her2, as expected in this Her2 negative model. On Day 17, tumors from mice treated with 20507-HC-E152C-S375C-5B showed a 5% ΔT/ΔC, while 20507-HC-E152C-S375C-5E and 20507-HC-E152C-S375C-5D regressed tumors by −19% and −25%. No statistical difference was observed between the anti-cKIT 20507 ADC-treated groups.

TABLE 13 Efficacy and body weight change of 20507 and TBS ADC with different site directed conjugations in NCI-H526 (SCLC) xenograft mouse model at Day 17 Tumor Response Mean Mean change of tumor change Host Response volume vs of tumor Mean change Survival control Regression volume of body weight (Survivors Drug Dose Schedule (T/C) (%) (%) (mm3 ± SEM) (% ± SEM) / total) Vehicle  0 mg/kg Single 100 —  619 ± 142 4.2 ± 0.7 6/6 Dose IV TBS-HC- 10 mg/kg Single 116 — 721 ± 77 3.2 ± 1.2 6/6 E152C- Dose IV S375C-5B 20507- 10 mg/kg Single  5 — −34 ± 18 0.4 ± 1.0 6/6 HC- Dose IV E152C- S375C-5B TBS-HC- 10 mg/kg Single 117 — 722 ± 71 2.0 ± 1.1 6/6 E152C- Dose IV S375C-5E 20507- 10 mg/kg Single — −19.29 −41 ± 17 −1.6 ± 1.3  6/6 HC- Dose IV E152C- S375C-5E TBS-HC- 10 mg/kg Single 138 —  854 ± 101 4.07 ± 0.9  6/6 E152C- Dose IV S375C-5D 20507- 10 mg/kg Single — −24.95 −52 ± 13 0.4 ± 1.8 6/6 HC- Dose IV E152C- S375C-5D

Example 19: Antitumor Activity of Anti-c-Kit Antibody NEG085 Conjugated to Eg5 Inhibitor Payloads in NCI-H526 Cells

5000 NCI-H526 (SCLC) cells were seeded in 90 μl of RPMI per well in a black-walled 96-well plate. The cells were incubated at 3TC overnight. At the next day, a 10× stock of ADCs was prepared with the highest final concentration of 10 μg/ml. A 3 fold serial dilution was performed and 10 μl of ADC was added per well. The cells were incubated for 5 days at 3TC. On day 5, the cells were removed from the incubator and allowed to cool to room temperature. 50 μl of Cell TiterGlo reagent (Promega, cat #B7570) was added per well, shaken gently and briefly on an orbital shaker. The readout was measured on a Wallac MicroBeta® (Perkin Elmer, Waltham MA) for 3 sec/well. The luminescence data was saved in an Excel format or a format that is readable by Excel.

The NCI-H526 SCLC cell line was tested for its sensitivity to the various c-Kit Eg ADCs in a proliferation assay. As shown in FIG. 13 , NEG-085 conjugated to 5B, 5E or 5D payloads is a potent inhibitor of tumor cell growth and thus are potent ADCs.

Example 20: Antitumor Activity of Anti-c-Kit Antibody NEG085 Conjugated to Eg5 Inhibitor Payload in NCI-H526 Xenograft Tumor Model

Antitumor activity of the anti-cKit antibody NEG085 conjugated to 3 different Eg5 inhibitor (Eg5i) linker/payloads 5B, 5D, and 5E were evaluated in the NCI-H526 small cell lung cancer xenograft tumor model. Female SCID Beige mice were implanted subcutaneously with 5×10⁶ NCI-H526 cells suspended in PBS. The total injection volume containing cells in suspension was 100 Mice were enrolled in the study nine days post implantation with average tumor volume of 198 mm³. After being randomly assigned to one of eight groups (n=5/group), mice were administered a single intravenous (i.v.) injection of PBS or NEG085 conjugated to one of three Eg5 inhibitor linker/payloads administered at 26 or 103 nM Eg5 inhibitor per kg of body weight. ADCs and amount administered are as follows: NEG085-5B at 26 nM/kg Eg5 inhibitor (1.25 mg/kg ADC) or 103 nM/kg Eg5 inhibitor (5.0 mg/kg ADC); NEG085-5E at 26 nM/kg Eg5 inhibitor (1.21 mg/kg ADC) or 103 nM/kg Eg5 inhibitor (4.84 mg/kg); NEG085-5D at 26 nM/kg Eg5 inhibitor (1.34 mg/kg ADC) or 103 nM/kg Eg5 inhibitor (5.34 mg/kg ADC). gH-5D, a non-targeted negative control ADC, was administered at 103 nM/kg Eg5 inhibitor (4.56 mg/kg ADC). Tumors were calipered twice per week.

As anticipated, the non-targeted negative control ADC gH-5D was not active. Dose dependent anti-tumor activity was observed for all three anti-cKIT Eg5 inhibitor ADCs evaluated in this study. Anti-tumor activity at day 26 post cell implantation (14 days post dose) in the groups receiving 103 nM/kg Eg5 inhibitor was 35, 44, and 65% T/C for NEG085-5D,-5E, and -5B, respectively. The graph in FIG. 14 shows that NEG085-5B, 5E and 5D reduce tumor cell volume in a xenograft mouse model.

Example 21. NEG085-Eg5 Inhibitors in Combination Therapy

ADCs can be combined with small molecule inhibitors. Using either the Chalice software (Zalicus, Cambridge MA) or ComboExplorer application (Novartis, Basel CH), the response of the combination is compared to its single agents, against the widely used Loewe model for drug-with-itself dose-additivity (Lehar et al. Nat. Biotechnol. (2009) 27: 659-666; Zimmermann et al., Drug Discov. Today (2007) 12: 34-42). Excess inhibition compared to additivity can be plotted as a full dose-matrix chart to visualize the drug concentrations where synergies occur. Table 14 shows several NEG085-Eg5/combinations.

Cell viability can be determined by measuring cellular ATP content using the CellTiter Glo luminescence assay (Promega, Madison WI). One day before drug addition, 250-500 GIST cells from 2 different cell lines are plated into 384-well plates (Greiner, Monroe, NC) in 20 μl growth media. The GIST430 cells contain a double mutation in cKIT which makes them partially resistant to Glivec® (Imatinib). The GIST882 cells have a single mutation in cKIT and are sensitive to Glivec® (Imatinib) Cells are then incubated for 120 h with various concentrations of NEG085-Eg5 inhibitor (Table 1), as a single agent, single agent compounds or NEG085-Eg5/compound combinations before CellTiter Glo reagent is added to each well and luminescence recorded on an Envision® plate reader (Perkin Elmer, Waltham MA). Luminescence values are used to calculate the inhibition of cell viability relative to DMSO-treated cells (0% inhibition).

TABLE 14 NEG085-Eg5 inhibitor combinations NEG085-Eg5 inhibitor in Target of combination compound with: Structure RTKi Glivec ® Imatinib RTKi Sutent ® Sunitinib IAPi NVP-LCL161

PI3K fam. NVP-BEZ235

pan PI3Ki NVP-BKM120

PI3K NVP-BYL719

mTORi (cat.) NVP-CCG168

mTORi Afinitor ® Everolimus (allo.) HSP90i NVP-HSP990

JAK2 NVP-BVB808

In summary, the anti-cKIT ADCs disclosed herein can synergistic effects when used in combination with other molecules to lead to more options for treatment.

Example 22 LC/MS Methods

Temperatures are given in degrees Celsius. If not mentioned otherwise, all evaporations are performed under reduced pressure, typically between about 15 mm Hg and 100 mm Hg (=20-133 mbar). The structure of final products, intermediates and starting materials is confirmed by standard analytical methods, e.g., microanalysis and spectroscopic characteristics, e.g., MS, IR, NMR. Abbreviations used are those conventional in the art.

-   -   DCM: dichloromethane     -   DIAD: Diisopropyl azodicarboxylate     -   DIPEA: diisopropyl ethylamine     -   DMF: N,N-dimethylformamide     -   ETOAC: ethyl acetate     -   TBSCl: tert-butyldimethylsilyl chloride     -   TFA: trifluoroacetic acid     -   THF: tetrahydrofuran

All reactions were carried out under Ar using commercial grade solvents without any further distillation. Reagents were used as commercial grade without further purification. Thin layer chromatography was carried out using TLC-aluminum sheets with 0.2 mm of silica gel (Merck F₂₅₄). Column chromatography was carried out using an ISCO Combiflash Companion system, using flash grade prepacked Redisep® columns

NMR spectra were recorded at 23° C. or 29° C. using the following spectrometers: Bruker 400 MHz and Bruker AVANCE 600 MHz proton frequency, equipped with a 1.7 mm ¹H{¹³C, ¹⁵N} CryoProbe™. Preparative HPLC was performed on Waters Autopurification system using the following conditions: Column Sunfire C18 30×100 mm, 5μ, gradient elution with CH₃CN in water+0.1% TFA-CH₃CN at 30 ml/min.

LC/MS data were produced with a Waters Acquity UPLC/SQD system, using a photodiode array detector and a single quadrupole mass detector. The following conditions were utilized:

-   -   Column: Waters Acquity HSS T3 1.8 μm 2.1×50 mm     -   Eluent A: Water+0.05% Formic acid+3.75 mM Ammonium acetate     -   Eluent B: Acetonitrile+0.04% Formic Acid     -   Column temperature: 60° C.     -   Injection-Vol. 1 μl, partial loop     -   PDA Full scan 210-450 nm and one user-selectable wavelength     -   Method A: LCMS_2_MINUTES     -   Flow 1.0 ml/min     -   Stop Time 2.00 min

Gradient: Time % A (Eluent A) % B (Eluent B) 0.00 95 5 1.40 2 98 1.80 2 98 1.90 95 5 2.00 95 5 Mass range ESI +/−: 100-1200 m/z

-   -   Method B: LCMS_10_MINUTES     -   Flow 1.0 ml/min     -   Stop Time 10.00 min

Gradient: Time % A (Eluent A) % B (Eluent B) 0.00 95 5 9.40 2 98 9.80 2 98 9.90 95 5 10.00 95 5 Mass range ESI +/−: 100-1600 m/z

-   -   Method C: LC-MS Column Acquity UPLC BEH C18 1.7 um, 2.1*50 mm     -   5 minutes (Flow 0.7 ml/min, solvent A: water+0.1% formic acid,         solvent B: ACN+0.1% formic acid, Gradient: from 20 to 100% B in         4.3 min)         Where the LC method is not specified, Method A was used if         retention time is under 1.5 minutes and Method B was used for         retention times between 1.5 and 10 minutes.     -   UPLCMS—Method D (Polar Method, 2 mins Run):     -   System: Waters Acquity UPLC with Waters SQ detector.     -   Column: Acquity HSS T3 1.8 μm 2.1×50 mm.     -   Flow: 1 ml/min. Column temperature: 60° C.     -   Gradient: from 1 to 98% B in 1.4 min, A=water+0.05% formic         acid+3.75 mM ammonium acetate,     -   B=acetonitrile+0.0.4% formic acid.     -   UPLCMS Method E (4 minute runs)     -   System: Waters Acquity UPLC with Waters SQ detector.     -   Column: Sunfire C18 3.5 μm 2.1×20 mm.     -   Flow: 0.62 ml/min. Column temperature: 40° C.     -   Gradient: from 5 to 100% B in 4 min, A=water+0.1%         trifluoroacetic acid, B=acetonitrile+0.1% trifluoroacetic acid.         Preparative LC Methods     -   Normal Phase Chromatography—PrepLC Method A     -   System: CombiFlash Rf200.     -   Column: RediSep Column Silica.     -   Gradiend: from 0 to 100% B, A=Heptane, B=Ethyl Acetate.     -   Normal Phase Chromatography—PrepLC Method B     -   System: CombiFlash Rf200.     -   Column: RediSep Column Silica.     -   Gradiend: from 0 to 100% B, A=Dichloromethane, B=MeOH.     -   Preparative Reverse Phase Chromatography—PrepLC Method C     -   System: Waters Acquity Prep LC/MS with Waters SQ detector.     -   Column: Sunfire Preparative C18, 5 μm, 30×100 mm.     -   Flow: 30 ml/min.     -   Gradient: from 5 to 100% B, A=acetonitrile+0.1% trifluoroacetic         acid, B+water+0.1% trifluoroacetic acid.     -   Preparative Reverse Phase Chromatography—PrepLC Method D     -   System: Waters Acquity Prep LC/MS with Waters SQ detector.     -   Column: Sunfire Preparative C18, 5 μm, 30×150 mm.     -   Flow: 60 ml/min.     -   Gradient: from 5 to 100% B, A=acetonitrile+0.1% trifluoroacetic         acid, B+water+0.1% trifluoroacetic acid.

It is understood that the examples and aspects described herein are for illustrative purposes only and that various modifications or changes in light thereof will be suggested to persons skilled in the art and are to be included within the spirit and purview of this application and scope of the appended claims. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A method of treating a cKIT positive cancer in a patient in need thereof, comprising administering to said patient an antibody drug conjugate of the formula Ab-(L-(D)m)n or a pharmaceutically acceptable salt thereof; wherein Ab is an antibody or antigen binding fragment thereof that specifically binds to an epitope of human cKIT, wherein said antibody or antigen binding fragment thereof comprises: (i) a heavy chain variable region that comprises (a) a HCDR1 (CDR-Complementarity Determining Region) of SEQ ID NO: 76, (b) a HCDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 77, (c) a HCDR3 of SEQ ID NO: 78; and a light chain variable region that comprises: (d) a LCDR1 of SEQ ID NO: 85, (e) a LCDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 86, and (f) a LCDR3 of SEQ ID NO: 87; wherein the CDRs of (a)-(f) are defined in accordance with the Kabat definition; or (ii) a heavy chain variable region that comprises (a) a HCDR1 of SEQ ID NO: 79, (b) a HCDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 80, (c) a HCDR3 of SEQ ID NO: 81; and a light chain variable region that comprises: (d) a LCDR1 of SEQ ID NO: 88, (e) a LCDR2 of SEQ ID NO: 89, and (f) a LCDR3 of SEQ ID NO: 90; wherein the CDRs of (a)-(f) are defined in accordance with the Chothia definition; L is a linker; D is a drug moiety; m is an integer from 1 to 8; and n is an integer from 1 to
 10. 2. The method of claim 1, wherein said cancer is selected from the group consisting of gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST), small cell lung cancer (SCLC), acute myeloid leukemia (AML), melanoma, mast cell leukemia (MCL), mastocytosis, neurofibromatosis, breast cancer, non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), and pancreatic cancer.
 3. The method of claim 1, wherein the antibody drug conjugate is administered in combination with another therapeutic agent.
 4. The method of claim 1, wherein the antibody drug conjugate is administered in combination with imatinib, sunitinib, NVP-LCL16, NVP-BEZ235, NVP-BKM120, NVP-BYL719, NVP-CCG168, everolimus, NVP-HSP990 or NVP-BVB808.
 5. The method of claim 1, wherein said n is 2 or
 4. 6. The method of claim 1, wherein said antibody or antigen binding fragment thereof specifically binds the extracellular domain of human cKIT (SEQ ID NO:178).
 7. The method of claim 6, wherein said antibody or antigen binding fragment thereof specifically binds to an epitope of human cKIT at domains 1-3 (SEQ ID NO:173) of the extracellular domain.
 8. The method of claim 1, wherein one or two amino acids within a CDR have been modified, deleted or substituted.
 9. The method of claim 1, wherein said antibody or antigen binding fragment thereof comprises: (i) a heavy chain variable region (VH) that comprises (a) SEQ ID NO: 82, and a light chain variable region (VL) that comprises (b) SEQ ID NO: 91; or (ii) a heavy chain that comprises (a) SEQ ID NO: 83, and a light chain that comprises (b) SEQ ID NO:
 92. 10. The method of claim 1, wherein the antibody or antigen binding fragment thereof retains at least 90, 91, 92, 93, 94, 95, 96, 97, 98 or 99% identity over either the variable light chain or variable heavy chain region.
 11. The method of claim 1, wherein the antibody is a monoclonal antibody, a chimeric antibody, a humanized antibody, a human engineered antibody, a human antibody, a single chain antibody (scFv) or an antibody fragment.
 12. The method of claim 1, wherein said linker (L) is selected from the group consisting of a cleavable linker, a non-cleavable linker, a hydrophilic linker, a procharged linker and a dicarboxylic acid based linker.
 13. The method of claim 1, wherein said linker (L) comprises a group of the formula —C(O)NR21- or —NR21-C(O)— wherein R21 is of the formula —(CH2)1-4-R22, where R22 is a polar group selected from —OH, —NH2, N(R23)2, COOR23, CON(R23)2, —(OCH2CH2O)k-OCH2CH2OR23, and —SO2R23, wherein k is 0 to 4 and each R23 is independently H or C1-4 alkyl.
 14. The method of claim 1, wherein said drug moiety (D) is selected from a group consisting of: an Eg5 inhibitor, a V-ATPase inhibitor, a pro-apoptotic agent, a Bcl2 inhibitor, an MCL1 inhibitor, a HSP90 inhibitor, an IAP inhibitor, an mTor inhibitor, a microtubule stabilizer, a microtubule destabilizer, an auristatin, a dolastatin, a MetAP (methionine aminopeptidase), an inhibitor of nuclear export of proteins CRM1, a DPPIV inhibitor, proteasome inhibitors, inhibitors of phosphoryl transfer reactions in mitochondria, a protein synthesis inhibitor, a kinase inhibitor, a CDK2 inhibitor, a CDK9 inhibitor, a kinesin inhibitor, an HDAC inhibitor, a DNA damaging agent, a DNA alkylating agent, a DNA intercalator, a DNA minor groove binder, a RNA polymerase inhibitor, a topoisomerase inhibitor and a DHFR inhibitor.
 15. The method of claim 1, wherein the drug moiety (D) and linker (L) is selected from the group consisting of:


16. The method of claim 1, wherein the antibody or antigen binding fragment thereof contains at least one non-native cysteine introduced into a constant region, and the linker (L) is attached to the non-native cysteine.
 17. The method of claim 16, wherein the at least one non-native cysteine introduced into the constant region is selected from the group consisting of SEQ ID NO: 185, SEQ ID NO:186, SEQ ID NO:187 and SEQ ID NO:188. 